Chili with turkey and beans

Everyone loves a good chili. Although Cooking Light's beef and beer chili is one of our go-to favorites, this Power Foods chicken chili is a contender. However, I make it with ground turkey instead of chicken pieces, just because I often have ground turkey on hand in the freezer. I also feel like the ground turkey adds some really great flavor.

Also. Be warned. This chili will make your kitchen smell like a fiesta. I take that back - it will make your whole house smell like a fiesta. Especially if you live in a small house or an apartment, for that matter. I mean, Zack walked in after work and was overcome by this simmering goodness coming from our stove. Furthermore, when I got to work the next morning, I realized that I smelled like chili because I had thrown on the same sweatshirt that I had worn while I was cooking the night before. That went in the wash pretty quick. It did smell good, but it kind of reeked of onion and the smells of cumin and chiles. You get the picture: delicious, but very fragrant.

Chili with turkey and beans

As adapted from Power Foods - 150 Delicious Recipes with the 38 Healthiest Ingredients

Serves 6.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

2 onions, finely chopped (about 3 cups)

5 garlic cloves, coarsely minced

1 green (or red, orange, yellow, etc.) bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, finely chopped

1 3/4 pounds ground turkey

2 teaspoons chili powder

A heaping pinch of cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 dried bay leaf

1 can (28 ounces) chopped tomatoes

1 can (4 ounces) green chiles, drained and finely chopped

2 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken stock

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 cans (15 ounces each) kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt, for garnish (optional)

Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish (optional)

In a Dutch oven or large soup pot, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and cumin seeds over medium, stirring, until cumin is lightly toasted and aromatic, about 1 minute. Add onions, garlic, and bell pepper; cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables are soft and lightly golden, about 15 minutes. Push onion mixture to edges of pot, add remaining 1 teaspoon oil, and increase heat to medium-high. Add ground turkey, chili powder, cayenne, and oregano; cook until turkey is browned and cooked through, breaking into chunks and stirring until spices are evenly spread throughout. Add bay leaf to pot, then add tomatoes and their juice and green chiles; stir to combine. Bring to simmer. Add stock, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and beans; season with pepper, and stir to combine. Bring to simmer again. Stir, reduce heat to medium-low, and gently simmer, uncovered, until bean mixture thickens, about 45-50 minutes. Serve immediately, garnished with yogurt and/or cilantro leaves, as desired.

Evidently, this chili has a lot of ingredients, many of which could be played around with. You could switch out the turkey for chicken or ground beef, and you could also try different varieties of beans. I would normally use green bell pepper for this recipe, but they were out at the grocery store, so I threw in a combination of orange and yellow. The options are endless!

If you need a good, but healthful chili, this one is great. Here's to good and wholesome comfort food. Cheers.

Week Five: Beef Barley Soup, Rustic Genovese Basil Pesto Pasta, and Curried Chicken with Coconut Rice

Beef Barley Soup

This week, I was craving warm, comfort food. Thus, beef and barley soup. This recipe is pretty darn quick and easy. And it is the ultimate cozy, comfort-food inspired meal. The beef and barley combination is classic; the flavors and textures meld so perfectly together. I just love barley too; it's a really hearty grain.

Find the Whole Living recipe here: Beef Barley Soup.

I like to buy "stew beef" for recipes like this. It's already chunked into pieces. Since they are usually pretty hefty chunks, I tend to cut the pieces into halves or thirds. That way, you don't feel like you are gnawing through your meal as much.

This is a great weeknight recipe, and it made for a great lunch the next day.

Rustic Genovese Basil Pesto Pasta

This recipe came from Clean Eating magazine. Find the recipe here: Rustic Genovese Basil Pesto Pasta. What drew me to this recipe was the bright green, almost chunky pesto.

I love pesto. But I really don't like using store bought pesto unless I have to. I mean, it's kind of brown-looking and I can never remember how long it's been in the refrigerator. Seriously, let's think about this. Pestos are usually made from basil, and we all know how long fresh basil lasts. Usually, I've had it about two seconds before the leaves start browning and it starts smelling kind of rancid. I guess that's a good reason to have it growing fresh at home. However, I have read lately that if you're dealing with store bought fresh basil, it's good to trim the ends, place in a glass of water at room temperature, and trim the stems/change the water every day until used. Supposedly, it can last up to two weeks when stored this way (I have yet to see this happen).

Now, that I'm done (well, almost) with my basil and pesto rant, let's talk about this delicious recipe. Blanching and shocking the basil leaves and green beans keep them nice and bright green. What an incredible idea! (I think that's what the makers of store bought pesto are missing out on.) The pesto in this recipe, combined with whole-wheat pasta and roasted cherry tomatoes, is truly rustic as the recipe name implies. It was really good.

Word to the wise though. This pesto has garlic (of course). Which is great. But uh, it was pretty strong in this recipe. I don't know if I used too much or if it's flavor was heightened when added to the extra virgin olive oil for the pesto, but it was potent. Like Zack-and-I-were-still-tasting-it-the-next-day potent. Zack was so worried that his patients would notice his garlic breath that he passed on his lunch leftovers to his unsuspecting co-worker. (Who absolutely loved the pasta, by the way.) So, you have been warned. Delicious, but garlic-strong.

Curried Chicken with Coconut Rice

This curry recipe was a Pinterest find. What's new, right? Find the recipe here: Curried Chicken with Coconut Rice.

Zack loves curry. He could eat it everyday. And he loves Indian. So this recipe was a very good find. Other than the fact that I used brown rice instead of basmati, and the dish took a little longer to cook than indicated as a result, this was great. Oh and other than the fact that I was like crying from the time I started dicing the onion all the way until I was done eating this piping-hot (temperature-wise) and spicy meal. So good though.

The chicken was so tender and the spices are perfect. And as Zack says, the combination of the hot, spicy with the cool, fresh tomatoes is really good. Plus, it's a one-pot meal and you will have plenty of leftovers. 

Well, that's all for Week Five. This meal planning thing has been going really well. I enjoy searching for recipes/ideas at the beginning of each week. Goodness, I don't know what people did before the internet. Furthermore, because of the planning that this involves, Zack and I feel like we are eating healthier and we are more satisfied with what we are eating. It's a win-win. I don't plan on stopping now; see you back here soon! Cheers.