Leftover Turkey Chili

Our lovely $10 turkey has been feeding us all week. Sadly we ran out of yummy sides so I decided to use the leftover meat to make a chili. I based the recipe off my Crockpot Chicken Taco Chili and used my homemade seasoning. It was a hit! It was nice and chunky which is what Mr. Lawyer likes. It was a great way to use up the turkey meat that had been sitting in the fridge a few days and was getting a little on the dry side. I currently have the turkey carcass simmering away on the stove making some broth which is perfect for a nice snowy day!

Leftover Turkey Chili

(from my kitchen!)

Ingredients:

1 red onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 can black beans
1 can kidney beans 

1 can chili beans
1 can tomato sauce
10 oz package frozen corn kernels
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 packet taco seasoning (I used two tablespoons homemade seasoning)
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 cups chopped or shredded turkey (or about 1 turkey breast)
Directions:
1. In a large pot saute the onion and pepper in a tablespoon or two of olive oil until soft.

2. Add in the seasoning, all the beans, corn, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and turkey. Stir well. Let simmer until hot. 

3. Top with yummy things like cheddar cheese, sour cream, or green onions! Serve with cornbread.

Chicken & Barley Chili

It's chilly outside! This makes me very excited. Fall is probably my favorite overall season. Fall means it is SOUP AND CHILI SEASON! I had a random bag of barley that the Mother Unit had given me so this recipe was perfect. Overall it is very similar to the Chicken Taco Chili I made last year. The main difference is subbing the barley for some beans. I really enjoyed the addition of the barley. It was a little more labor intensive to cook the chicken separately instead of throwing it all in the crock pot like the Chicken Taco Chili but that's not a deal breaker. This chili is very filling and yummy. It was a hit with the boy. I'm really sad that it is all gone.

I served it up with Cabot Cheddar of course.

Chicken & Barley Chili

(Pinterest find! melskitchencafe.com)

Ingredients:
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (16-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup medium barley
4 cups water
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
dash cayenne pepper (more or less to taste)
2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds), cut into bite-size pieces
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels
Garnishes: shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, sliced green onions, tortilla chips
Directions:
1. In a large pot , combine the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, chicken broth, barley, water, chili powder, cumin, dried oregano and cayenne. Stir well. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat and add the chicken. Stir to combine. 

2. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer the chili for 40 minutes, until the barley is tender and chewy and the chicken is no longer pink. Stir occasionally, while it simmers to prevent sticking and to make sure it stays at a steady simmer. 

3. After 40 minutes, add the beans and corn. Stir to combine and simmer for five more minutes. Serve the chili with optional garnishes.

Chili Bar!

It's my birthday weekend and football playoffs....the perfect excuse for a party! I wanted something easy, low maintenance, and preferably sports themed. I saw an idea on pinterest for a chili bar, genius! You can make a large crock pot of chili for cheap and you don't have to worry about it staying warm. A rough budget is ten bucks: the turkey was five dollars a pound and the five cans of beans/soup were a dollar each (some were on sale and cheaper). Yay! I've been tweaking my turkey chili. This version has more spice and was a big hit. I always put in a ton of beans. Do not be put off by the long list of ingredients, making your own seasoning mix is essential! It's very easy and much better than the packaged taco seasoning. The toppings bar was fun! It was a great way to show off my new dishes too! We had cheddar cheese, sour cream, raw onions, green onions, jalapenos, mini cornbread muffins, and fritos.

The tea cups were the perfect size for serving the toppings.

My Turkey Chili!

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

1 pound ground turkey
½ cup chopped onion
1 can pork and beans
1 to 2 cans of chili beans (depending on your preferences)
1 large can undrained diced tomatoes
1 can condensed tomato soup
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon chili powder 

3-5 tablespoons sriracha or hot sauce
Directions:

1. First up make your seasoning mix! In a small bowl, mix together chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper.

2. Brown onion and turkey. Add the seasoning mix to the browning turkey and simmer for a few minutes.
2. Add turkey, tomato soup, and the three cans of beans. Stir in brown sugar, additional chili powder, and sriracha. Simmer until done, a couple of hours on low.

Hurricane Chili!

In August 2011 during Hurricane Irene I made some fabulous Hurricane Potato Soup. This time around I went with some Hurricane Chicken Taco Chili and it was a hit. I will definitely be adding this to my chili recipe rotation. It was chock full of beans, the corn was a nice touch, and the spice was spot on. It's from a healthy recipe site and was created with weight watchers in mind so it's super healthy! 

I also made my own taco seasoning. So fancy! I loved it so much that I will be making a larger batch to keep on hand. It's easy to customize if you want more or less spice and if you're concerned about sodium you can tweak the amount of salt (or completely omit it), something you can't do with pre-packaged taco seasoning!

Homemade Taco Seasoning

(adapted from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (some versions use cayenne pepper)
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin (I used 1/2 teaspoon)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
Directions:
1. In a small bowl, mix together chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper. Store in an airtight container.

Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili

(adapted from skinnytaste.com)

Ingredients:

1 onion, chopped
1 16-oz can black beans
1 16-oz can kidney beans
1 16-oz can tomato sauce
10 oz package frozen corn kernels
2 14.5-oz cans diced tomatoes w/chilies (I used Hunts diced tomatoes with zesty jalapenos!)
1 packet taco seasoning (I used two tablespoons homemade seasoning)
1 tbsp cumin (I only used 1 teaspoon)
1 tbsp chili powder
24 oz. (3) boneless skinless chicken breasts (I only used two and it was fine)
chili peppers, chopped (optional)
chopped fresh cilantro, cheese, sour cream for serving
Directions:
1. Combine beans, onion, chili peppers, corn, tomato sauce, cumin, chili powder and taco seasoning in a slow cooker. Place chicken on top and cover. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. (**I sliced my chicken breasts into smaller strips to reduce the cooking time**)

2. Half hour before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Top with fresh cilantro. Also try it with low fat cheese and sour cream.

Beans, Beans, Beans!

When I took a look at my cupboards today I realized that they had been colonized by beans. There were baked beans, spicy black beans, refried beans, red beans, kidney beans, and a dried white bean kit. Yikes! Mr. Lawyer had mention wanting to make the white bean chili kit but with this past weekends festivities it got away from us. We picked up this kit (for free!) on our vacation to NH and it contained dried beans and a spice mix. All I had to do was add chicken, water, chicken broth and a little salt. That is after I boiled and soaked the dried beans for eternity. I have never done anything with dried beans and now I know why all my food magazines recommend starting the soak before you go to bed and just leaving them over night! It was perfectly fine for a free meal starter but it could have used a little more spice. I did decide that there wasn't enough beans and threw in the can of kidney beans.

Chili Snow

And we've come full circle! Way back in December my first post after moving to Philly was on Turkey Chili and here it is again! We used my original chili recipe as a loose guide but Mr. Lawyer requested spicy so that's what we did! All served up with Cabot Cheddar (I found some Seriously Sharp out in the suburbs....it might last the weekend!) and cornbread. It was the perfect dish for the first snow of the year! It was all blustery, freezing and snowing outside and inside it was nice, toasty and a crockpot of chili was making the place smell heavenly. mmmmm. I love it.

Jenni's Turkey Chili

(from my kitchen!)

Ingredients:
1 pound ground turkey
½ cup chopped onion

3 cloves chopped garlic

2 jalapeno peppers, chopped
1 can kidney beans
2 cans of chili beans
1 can undrained diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon or so of chili powder

A few dashes of red pepper flakes

Cheddar cheese and cornbread for serving
Directions:
1. Saute up the onion, garlic, and peppers. Add in the turkey, sprinkle with chili pepper and pepper flakes and cook until browned.
2. Throw everything in the crockpot on low and go about your day smelling the deliciousness as you putter around your house.

3. Serve with cheese and bread

Leftovers freeze wonderfully for a chilly (chili!) day pick me up!

SU and Birthdays and a Dinner Party oh my!

Happy Dinner Party/Birthday Amanda/Go SU! We certainly had lots to celebrate Friday night. For my birthday I couldn't decide which cupcakes to make: Irish or S'mores? Obviously I went with the Irish ones and had to wait for an opportunity to make the S'more ones...enter Amanda's birthday! They were a bit messy to eat but they certainly tasted like a S'more.

Ingredient/Technical Difficulties: Marshmallow Fluff is harder to find around here then I thought. The local stores had all sorts of peanut butter, jam and jellies but no fluff! Just as I was mentally preparing to make it from scratch Mr. Lawyer found some Ricemallow Fluff from Whole Foods. It tasted fine, a bit sweeter maybe but it did not hold it's shape which posed a problem with making the garnish. It oozed all over the place and didn't harden up. I charred up some mini marshmallows which worked wonderfully and looked more visually pleasing (you can see both toppings in the photo). I would recommend using fluff for the filling but going the normal marshmallow route for the topping. Either way prepare for a mess, I was very angry at marshmallows while making these (who on earth would ever make something so sticky and messy!! Grrr...). However I thought that the toasted marshmallow on top added some of the best flavor, nothing like nice toasty caramelized sugar to zing up a cupcake. Also, Cupcake Corer.  Best five dollars I ever spent.

S'more Cupcakes

(Bon Appétit Magazine)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 1 packet)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup whole milk
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate chopped
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup plus one 7-ounce jar marshmallow creme (Or 7oz of marshmallows)
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
12 1-inch pieces broken graham crackers (for garnish)
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 standard muffin cups with paper liners. Whisk graham crumbs, flour, baking powder, and pinch of salt in medium bowl. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating to blend between additions. Beat in vanilla. Add graham-cracker mixture in 3 additions alternately with milk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with graham-cracker mixture. Divide batter among muffin cups.
2. Bake cupcakes until tester inserted into center come out clean, about 22 minutes. Transfer cupcakes to rack; cool completely.

3. Place chocolate in medium bowl. Bring cream just to boil in small saucepan; pour over chocolate. Let stand 1 minute; stir until smooth. Cool ganache until lukewarm.
4. Core cupcakes with a  cupcake corer, apple corer, spoon, etc. Spoon 3/4 cup marshmallow creme into resealable plastic bag, pushing into 1 bottom corner. Cut 1/2 inch off corner. Pipe into holes in cupcakes. Spread 2 teaspoons ganache over each cupcake.

5. Preheat broiler. Coat rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Spoon dollops of marshmallow creme on sheet (or marshmallows!). Broil until slightly charred, 1 to 2 minutes. Spoon dollop of charred creme over each cupcake; garnish with piece of graham cracker.

Poorly behaving Ricemallow Fluff and well behaved but messy mini marshmallows.

Final Product? Amazing.

There's a bunch more so I will use a super obnoxious page break. Read on for the rest of our goodies!

Philly Chili

I do believe it’s finally time to start this blog up. New city, new start, new food! Our first official meal in our new place:

Turkey Chili!

The Turkey Chili is a crockpot recipe and therefore very simple. I got it out of a magazine left in the office a few years ago, not sure which one. It was aimed towards kids so it’s not too spicy.

Ingredients:

1 pound ground turkey

½ cup chopped onion

1 can pork and beans

1 to 2 cans of chili beans (depending on your preferences)

1 can undrained diced tomatoes (or equivalent in fresh tomatoes)

1 can condensed tomato soup

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon chili powder (plus more to taste)

Directions:

1. Brown onion and turkey. I like to add the chili powder here.

2. Throw everything in the crockpot on low and go about your day.

I have made this recipe several times and it always comes out wonderful. It’s a sweeter chili but that makes it flexible for everyone. Using fresh tomatoes makes it a touch sweeter but more yummy. You can add red pepper flakes, Tabasco, etc to each bowl depending on your tastes. It makes a large batch so I always end up freezing some for a chilly day when I don’t feel like cooking.