Turkey Chili

 Chili is just one of those quintessential comfort foods for me. My mom use to make a giant pot of chili on rodeo weekend every September. I never cared much for the rodeo, but I always looked forward to the chili. She'd always make a big batch of cornbread to go with it and it was heaven! These days I make my own version and I make it year round. It's too good to save for the fall! For my version I use ground turkey and I usually just throw ingredients together so it ends up being a little bit different each time. I tried to nail down a recipe here. Chili is really foolproof so it's pretty much impossible to mess it up. It's incredibly easy and fast as well, just throw everything in one pot! And it makes me think of my Ma :) 

So, here's my version

Ingredients: ground turkey (or beef), olive oil (not pictured), onion, green peppers, garlic, whole tomatoes, pinto beans, kidney beans, black beans, chili powder (not pictured), paprika, cumin, coriander, oregano, marjoram, salt and pepper. And shredded cheddar cheese for topping.

chop onion

chop peppers

Brown turkey (or beef) and onions in stock pot. Add garlic and spices.

Add peppers and cook a few minutes.

Add beans.

Squish whole tomatoes with hands and add.

Top with cheese and serve with crackers... or cornbread. Yum!

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound ground turkey (or beef)

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 onion

2 green peppers

2 cloves of garlic minced

2 28oz cans whole tomatoes

1 can pinto beans

1 can kidney beans

1 can black beans

2 Tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1\2 teaspoon dried oregano

1\2 teaspoon salt

1\2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1\4 teaspoon marjoram

1\4 teaspoon oregano

INSTRUCTIONS:

Heat olive oil in stock pot over medium heat. Put ground turkey in pot and cook until evenly browned. Add onion and cook until tender.

Add garlic and green peppers. Stir to combine.

Add spices and stir to combine again.

Add beans and stir.

Squish tomatoes with hands and add to pot. Stir it all up.

Reduce to low and simmer for about 25-30 minutes.

That's it! Enjoy!

Healthier (And Tastier) Version Of General Tso's Chicken

 

I saw Martha Stewart did a healthier version of General Tso's chicken. I adapted her recipe and this is my version of it. It is SO good! Perfect for those nights when you need something quick and easy, but also really delicious :) We love this!

 

 

Ingredients: Cornstarch, Snow Peas, Garlic, Ginger, Brown Sugar, Soy Sauce, Eggs, Chicken, Salt and Pepper.

Mix together water and cornstarch until smooth.

Cut peas. I did this poorly.

Add all sauce ingredients.

Stir to combine and set aside.

Whisk together eggs, cornstarch, salt and pepper.

Add chicken and stir to coat.

Heat skillet over medium high heat. Add the vegetable oil. Cook chicken.

Flip chicken and cook other side until cooked through (6-8 minutes total). Remove from pan and set aside.

Lower heat to medium or just under and add sauce mixture to pan. Cook until peas are tender and sauce is thickened.  (about 3-5 minutes)

Chicken waiting...

Here's the thickened sauce.

Add the chicken back to the pan and toss to coat.

Serve over rice.

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

SAUCE:

1 Tablespoon cornstarch

1/2 cup water

2 cups snow peas trimmed and halved diagonally

4 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 teaspoon ginger

3 Tablespoons brown sugar

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

 

CHICKEN:

2 large eggs

3 Tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 lb chicken cut into bite sized pieces

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

 

INSTRUCTIONS:

 

FOR SAUCE:

Mix together cornstarch and water until smooth. Add snow peas, garlic, ginger, brown sugar and soy sauce. Stir to combine, and set aside.

 

FOR CHICKEN:

Heat oil in non stick skillet. Cook chicken, turning occasionally until golden, 6-8 minutes. Transfer to plate and set aside.

 

Add sauce mixture to skillet. Cook until snow peas are tender and sauce has thickened, 3-5 minutes. Add chicken back to skillet and toss to coat. Serve over rice. Enjoy!

 

Easy Homemade Chicken Stock

Chicken stock is just one of those things that I always seem to need. So many different things can be made with it so I love having a batch on hand. To be honest, if you know me at all, you know I LOVE cutting costs and saving money. Makes me feel good :)

 And what is a better price than FREE? That's basically the cost of making this stock. I already used the whole chicken for two separate meals and now I'm using what would be trash to make something that I need and would otherwise be purchasing. Yay! And did I mention how easy it is? Yep. Almost too easy. Also, perhaps the best and most important thing, since it's made by me I know there are no creepy preservatives or mystery ingredients and I can control the salt content. Bonus!

 

Again...Remember this guy??? It started as Whole Roasted Chicken And Vegetables and then I used the remaining meat on this bad boy for my White Chicken Enchiladas. Now all that's left is literally skin and bones.

Leftover bones and skin.

Fill with water. 

Add seasonings of your choice.

Cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.

Remove bones and skin.

The finished product! It made 8 cups. Beautiful AND tasty :)

INGREDIENTS:

Chicken carcass

Water

Salt

Pepper

Season all

Put chicken carcass in slow cooker. Add water until full. Season with spices of your choice. Cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.  Remove all of the bones and skin. You can run it through a strainer at this point if you want to. I didn't. That's it! Throw it in your favorite recipe or even replace water with this when cooking rice. It adds so much flavor! Store in fridge or airtight container for up to a week or freeze! It's so tasty!!!

White Chicken Enchiladas

 These are SO easy and very delicious. You can throw them together very quickly!

 

Remember this guy? It was tasty. Here is what remained from my whole roasted chicken. I love having cooked chicken just hanging around. It's so versatile! I'm gonna use this for enchiladas.

Ingredients: Shredded chicken (pictured blow), butter, flour, sour cream, green chilies, chicken broth (I used better than bullion here because I was out of my homemade chicken stock), Monterey jack cheese and tortillas. (The ONLY time I EVER use store bought tortillas is for enchiladas. Honestly, they just hold up better, and it's a texture thing for me.)

Pick the remaining meat off of the chicken. You can use a premade rotisserie chicken or even just cooked chicken beasts, shredded. Throw the cooked chicken into a mixer with a paddle attachment. Turn mixer on medium until chicken is "shredded". You can use two forks to shred the cooked chicken instead. I use to use that method until I saw this done. Now I prefer the mixer because it takes no time.

Grate cheese.

Combine chicken and 1 cup of cheese.

Fill tortillas with chicken/cheese mixture and roll up. Place in 9x13 pan, seam side down.

Melt butter in sauce pan. Whisk in flour. Cook about 1 minute.

Whisk in broth.

 

Cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly.

Turn down heat to low and add sour cream and green chilies. Make sure you don't let it boil so the sour cream doesn't curdle or separate.

Finished sauce.

Pour over rolled tortillas.

Top with the remaining cup of cheese.

Bake at 350° for 22 minutes. Then broil on high for about 3 minutes until browned.

Finished product! Serve with green salad or what ever you choose. Enjoy!

 

INGREDIENTS:

8 flour tortillas

2 cups cooked, shredded chicken

2 cups grated Monterey jack cheese

3 Tablespoons of butter

3 Tablespoons of flour

2 cups of chicken broth (I used better than bullion. The ratio is 1 teaspoon of better than bullion for each cup of water.) 

1 cup of sour cream

1 4oz can diced green chilies

 

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9x13 pan.

2. Mix chicken and 1 cup of cheese.

3. Roll up chicken mixture in tortillas and place in pan seam side down. 

4. In a sauce pan melt butter and stir in flour. Cook about 1 minute.

5. Whisk in broth and heat until thick and bubbly.

6. Lower heat to low and stir in sour cream and green chilies. Be sure not to let the mixture boil at this point. You don't want the sour cream to curdle or separate.

7. Pour over tortillas and top with remaining 1 cup of cheese.

8. Bake at 350° for 22 minutes. Broil on high for about 3 minutes or until browned. Serve and enjoy!

 

I adapted this recipe from a recipe on joyfulmommaskitchen.com. Thanks for stopping by!