Chillin' with some Chili

Awww, doesn't Yoda look cute in his little outfit?

Actually his eyes are kinda creepy. I think they move! The batteries need to be replaced so we can hear his Yoda-speak again.

Along with red velvet chocolate chip cookies and the mushroom-spinach baked eggs, I also tried another new recipe...

involving beans and ground turkey!

Well there were some other ingredients as well. I made this more for Bert since he is a big chili fan. Me, not so much, but after looking through this new cookbook, I thought I could throw this together.

The book was written by two grad students. I got it used on Amazon (it came out in 2009). A lot of the recipes are pretty easy and they break down the estimated price, the number of servings and the price per serving.

There's the Turkey Chili bubbling happily away. Since I don't like beans that much, I only put half the amount it called for. The recipe at the end will show the full amount.

Toppings were Frito's corn chips and shredded cheese (this was the four cheese Mexican blend instead of just cheddar). I didn't add chopped white onions since that was already cooked down in the chili.

This was a massive hit with both Bert and TC. I had it yesterday and let's just say that it didn't really agree with me. Might've been the jalapeno pepper. This batch is supposed to feed 6, but those would be some huge ass bowls of chili. It would probably feed nearly twice as much and that's a lot considering I didn't even put the full amount of beans.

Top-Secret Turkey Chili
(p. 85 from "The Frugal Foodie" by Alana Kaufman  & Alex Small)

Ingredients:

• 6 tblsp olive oil (I thought this was excessive, plus curiously, the directions only said to use 3 tbsp when sauteeing the onions and garlic with NO mention of the other 3 tbsp of olive oil; I think they fkd up that one)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced (I used 5)
• 1 1/2 lbs. ground turkey (I used one)
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 tbsp oregano
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 bell peppers, chopped (I used the last two bells from our garden)
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeds removed, chopped (I used a pepper, also from our garden)
• 1 (29 oz) can diced tomatoes (I used two 15 oz. cans)
• 1 (29 oz) can black beans (I actually used only ONE 15 oz can)
• 1 (29 oz) can red kidney beans (ditto)
• 1 (29 oz) can pinto beans (ditto)
• Cheddar cheese, shredded, for garnish (we used the four cheese Mexican blend)
• Cilantro, chopped, for garnish (I forgot to chop it up and add it; you could also add chopped green onions as a topping if you don't like cilantro)

Directions:

• Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a large pot
• Saute onions and garlic 5 minutes
• Add ground turkey; cook additional 5-7 minutes
• Season with chili powder, oregano, salt and pepper
• Add bell and jalapeno peppers; cook until softened
• Add tomatoes and beans; simmer 30 minutes
• Adjust seasonings to taste
• Garnish with cheese and cilantro (or chopped green onions) and serve

I thought the seasonings were too mild and ending up putting a tiny bit more chili powder, salt, and pepper. The canned beans from Fresh & Easy did not have any added salt. Maybe that's why it was a bit too bland. We enjoyed the crunchiness of the Frito chips over the chili. This seemed like a hearty dish to have on a cold rainy day.