This past weekend, I traveled with my sister and my nephew to Wheatley Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada. My parents are vacationing in Wheatley for two weeks, so we decided to join them for one of their weekends on the campground. Our visit coincided with the 2009 Wheatley Provincial Park Chili Cook-Off. Each year, campers and locals compete for the best chili in park. This year there were 19 entries and the winner was the camp host’s wife. Everyone got a chance to taste all of the chilis, with the exception of us vegetarians who simply observed the tasting. My mom had made a delicious vegetarian chili earlier in the day, but did not submit it for competition due to her perception that it would lack appeal. I think she should have entered her chili non carne regardless, as it was delicious and probably would have yielded quite a few votes. At the end of this year’s competition, a measure was passed to allow non-chili dishes to compete alongside the chili dishes in next year’s competition. Maybe my mom will finally enter one of her vegetarian specialties which are loved by both meat eaters and vegetarians alike.
