Spicy White Chili

What a great time of the year for a wonderful chili recipe!  I found this recipe while looking through one of my many magazine subscriptions.  The recipe appealed to me because it doesn't have a lot of ingredients and it seemed "approachable".  There is nothing I hate more than seeing something that looks DELICIOUS but has a million ingredients and is super time consuming.  Believe me when I say this recipe is super easy and it is so so good!  If you like spicy food like my husband and I do, you can amp up the heat by adding additional cayenne pepper to the chili.  Enjoy!

Spicy White Chili

2 cups chopped onions
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 - 7oz. can of diced green chiles
3 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
3 - 15oz. cans of white kidney beans, rinsed & drained
2 - 14.5oz. cans of reduced sodium chicken broth
5 cups cubed or shredded turkey or chicken (I used chicken breasts, baked and then shredded them)
4 oz. Monterey Jack cheese with jalapeno peppers, shredded

1. In a large dutch oven or pot, cook onion and garlic in hot oil over medium-high heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring often, until tender. Stir in chiles, chili powder, oregano, and cayenne; cook 1 minutes.  Mash one can of beans (this thickens up the chili), and add all beans and the broth to the pot.  Bring to simmering and cook covered for 10 minutes.
2. Stir in chicken/turkey and cook about 10 minutes until heated through.  Stir in cheese until melted.  Makes 8 - 10 servings.

I apologize for my picture not being "prettier".  I was so excited to eat it I forgot to take a photo of the nice presentation in the actual serving bowl :).

Happy New Years!

Hello 2012!  I hope this year turns out to be more spectacular than the last.  Today I tried out a new recipe I found at http://todaysnest.typepad.com/todays-nest/2011/12/holiday-edition-lola-cooks-cabbage-rolls.html that I have been wanting to try for awhile.  CABBAGE ROLLS!  The recipe is pretty time intensive so it is something you probably want to make if you have an afternoon off or on the weekend.  The link above gives excellent directions so please go there for the full recipe.  Please note, the peeling of the cabbage leaves can be quite frustrating...so go in prepared :).  I bought two full heads of cabbage for this recipe so I could get the leaves that I needed, next time I might even do three.

The ingredients:

The rolls:

• 12-15 cabbage leaves
• 1 lb of ground beef
• ½ cup diced onion
• 2 cups diced tomatoes
• ½ cup water
• ¾ cup uncooked rice
• ½ teaspoon crushed dried thyme
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup grated parmesan cheese

The sauce:

• 2 28oz cans of crushed tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 ½  teaspoon crushed dried thyme
• 1 ½  teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, brown ground beef with onion over medium heat.  Drain off any fat.
2. Add tomatoes water, rice, thyme, pepper, and salt.  Bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 minutes.
4. Remove lid and stir in parmesan cheese.
5. Remove from heat.
6. Bring large pot of water to a boil.
7. With a paring knife angled at 45 degrees, hull the bottom of the cabbage to remove the stem.
8. Carefully remove as many leaves as possible.
9. Remove the heartiest part of the center vein on each leaf.
10. Immerse leaves, 3 or 4 at a time, in the boiling water just long enough to bring out the bright color and make them pliable (about 2 minutes).
11. Remove them from the water and drain.
12. While warm, overlap the split ends and place two tablespoons of the filling on the overlap.  Roll the end over once and then pull in the sides.  Continue rolling up tightly but gently so as to not rip the leaf.
13. Place a toothpick through the end of the leaf and all the way through the roll.
14. Place a small amount of sauce in the bottom of a slow cooker.
15. Add a layer of cabbage rolls.
16. Alternate layers of sauce and rolls finishing with sauce.
17. Place the lid on top and cook on low heat for at least 3 hours.

YUM!  Thank you Todaysnest!