all the fixin's! our chili toppings bar!

11 hours ago
5 min read

Thursday, February 19., 2026

We’re so happy that you chose to stop by

and spend some time with us today!

THANK YOU!

In our last post, we shared that next Thursday, February 26,

is known as National Tell a Fairy Tale Day.!

In that post, we highlighted one of our favorite fairy tales,

Goldilocks and the Three Bears,

and we also provided some fun just right activities to do

with the Littles in our lives, too.

Well, this year, February 26 also happens to be

National Chili Day, 2026!

National Chili Day is celebrated each year on the fourth Thursday of February.

In honor of this occasion,

Laura is excited to share her idea for Our Chili Toppings Board!

It will make any gathering extra delicious!

Last year, I shared a new recipe for chili,

Quinoa Pot Roast Chili!

I first made this chili for a large family gathering.

Since my hubby is gluten free

I wanted to make sure that the dish I made would be one he could enjoy

and one that everyone else would like, too!

Packed with lots of flavor and extra protein,

it ended up being a crowd favorite!

You can find the recipe for this chili in this post!

I had also asked two of my sister-in-laws to bring their favorite chili dishes, too,

and we set up a Chili Tasting Bar so everyone could sample them all!

As an added touch,

I decided to build a Chili Toppings Board,

with something for everyone!

It’s a given that not everyone likes the same thing

and when it comes to chili this is most certainly true!

Some like it spicy while others like a milder version.

Some like the addition of cilantro while others say “No way!”

With our large family gathering, I solved this problem

by creating a Toppings Board to go with our chili!

Everyone was able to customize their bowl of chili to their liking…

DELISH!

Our Toppings Board would be the perfect complement to any chili meal,

adding color, flavor, and countless ways for everyone to build a bowl they love!

Building a Toppings Board!

The Essentials!

First, I placed the following bowls on a big wooden board:

🔴 a big bowl of shredded cheese (cheddar, Cojack or pepper jack)

🔴 a bowl of sour cream (or you can use plain Greek yogurt)

🔴 a bowl of sliced avocado

🔴 a small bowl of pickled jalapeno peppers

🔴 a small bowl of pickled onions

🔴 a small bowl of lime wedges

More Goodies!

Then, I filled in the spaces around the bowls with the following items:

🔴 corn chips

🔴 black olives

🔴 cilantro

🔴 bacon slices

Finally, I added a bottle of hot sauce to the board!

Pile On More Toppings!

Here are some more mix-and-match items that you could add to your board!

🔴 chopped green onions

🔴 sliced tomatoes

🔴 diced red onion

🔴 roasted corn

🔴 crushed tortilla chips

🔴 queso

FYI: I purchased these bowls from Amazon to serve our chili in. They were the perfect size and the flat bottom worked so well!

We kept the menu simple for our gathering!

In addition to the chili and toppings board,

we served corn muffins with honey butter

and a salad that I prepped ahead of time!

I filled the bottom of my serving bowl with mixed salad greens. Then I topped the greens with

🔴 pomegranate seeds

🔴 mandarin oranges (1 or 2 cans, drained)

🔴 candied pecans

I arranged these salad ingredients by making a design with them on top of the greens. Then I wrapped the bowl in saran wrap and put the salad in the refrigerator to cool.

Right before serving, I added store-bought poppy seed dressing and tossed everything together.

(I also had a bowl of feta cheese nearby - you could use goat cheese, too - for those who wanted to add some!)

The salad was the perfect accompaniment

and a great addition to our Chili Tasting Bar!

We hope our Toppings Board gives you some inspiration

for what to serve at your next gathering!!

Trust us - you can’t go wrong with chili and a toppings board!!

If you have any thoughts about other items

that might be fun to include on our board,

PLEASE SHARE!

The more options, the yummier for everyone!

Simply leave a comment at the end of this post

or feel free to email us directly at ourgrandlives@gmail.com.

We invite you to check us out on Instagram and.or Facebook

where we share new content regularly!

We’d love it, too, if you would consider subscribing to our site.

We hope to see you back here next week

when we’ll return with a new post or two!

Whether your chili is mild and comforting or bold and fiery, a Toppings Board turns every bowl into something customized and fun. It invites everyone to gather, linger, and create a combination that feels just right to them.