Three Bean Slow Cooker Chicken Chili

Although winter has been slow to arrive, once the temperature drops below 50 degrees I start to bundle up.  Which also means time to make some winter recipes. Last year I was thrilled that I made turkey chili, but I really wanted to use my slow cooker.  This year, I found success with a recipe I kinda just threw together.

Ingredients

3 pieces skinless boneless chicken thighs

2 jalapenos chopped

1 small onion chopped

1 can chopped tomatoes

1 can red beans, rinsed and drained

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can white beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup vegetable broth

2 tsps chili powder

2 tsps cumin

1 tsp cinnamon

salt and pepper to taste

Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.  Add them to the slow cooker with the onions and jalapenos.

Next combine all the other ingredients in the slow cooker. 

Cover and cook on high for 3 hours or low for 6 hours. It will start to smell fantastic around the 2-hour mark, but don’t open it!! Trust me, it’s worth the wait!  And you thought the other chili was easy?

Hungry yet?

The Counter: Custom Built Burgers

Several months ago when I was still wearing a jacket outside and praying the temperature would at least hit 50, I saw a deal on Gilt City to build my own burger at The Counter. Of course I told MM about it. A few weeks ago we finally made it to The Counter. It's a smallish space in Times Square but it was pretty lively and the Heat/Celtics game was on. We started with the Turkey Chili.

OMG! It was soooo good! The little bits of dried cranberries were perfect with the sweet yet spicy chili. I tried to stop myself but I definitely ate far more than I should have! We also ordered sweet potato fries and regular fries.

Yum! The sweet potato fries were great and the other fries were perfect for eating with the chili. What makes The Counter so special is that you can build your own burger! When you sit down, you fill out an order sheet and mark off what you want.

MM ordered a salad with a whole lotta goodness.

It was apparently pretty good though it is still pretty strange to turn a burger into a salad. I ordered a juicy grilled chicken burger.

The sautéed onion was a bit overwhelming but the other toppings were excellent. The jalapeños, pickles, corn and sweet BBQ sauce were excellent. The bun also held up pretty well!

The Counter is a pretty pricy burger joint but it was really delicious! The burger was great but I was even more excited about the chili and fries. If you're hanging out in Times Square and in the mood for a delicious burger and some great starters/sides, I recommend  heading over to The Counter.

Hungry yet?

Best Turkey Chili EVER!

A few weeks ago, I received the cookbook Cooking for Two by Jessica Strand.  While it claims to have portions that are perfect for two, I find that most of the recipes can feed more than two – or maybe I just get full too quickly.  I decided to make some chili last week when it was monsooning and I was making good use of pumpkins.  The chili was fantastic and I FINALLY figured out how to make the consistency of my chili resemble restaurant quality.

2 tbs olive oil

1 ½ cups onions – coarsely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

½ green bell pepper, chopped

1 tsp ground cumin

1 lb ground turkey

½ tbs chili powder

½ tsp cinnamon

2 15oz cans black beans, well drained

1 14 ½ oz can diced tomatoes with juices

salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat.  Add the onion, garlic, bell pepper and cumin.  Sauté until the onion is soft, stirring frequently for about 10 minutes. Add turkey and cook until brown then add chili powder and cinnamon.  Add the black beans and tomatoes with their juices and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered until liquid is reduced by half, about 30 minutes.

Now the part that changed the consistency of the chili and brought it to the next level.  Transfer 2 cups of the chili into a food processor. Blend to a coarse paste, then return to the pot.  GENIUS!  Once I returned the chili to the pot, I stirred for a bit and let it simmer.  Amaaaazing!  I ate this chili for the rest of the week and was very happy to do so.  I will DEFINITELY be making this again.   I wish I had some toppings so the pictures could look a little less blah.  Apologies – I’ll dress it up better next time!

Hungry yet?

Spicy Chicken Chili

Yesterday was quite the lopsided eating day.  I had breakfast around 11 and ate lunch at 5.  The lunch was fantastic – a delicious Lucky Chicken Sandwich, fries and a chocolate chip cookie.  I would have taken pictures, but I was starving and besides you’ve seen it before. J

A 5pm lunch meant that it wasn’t until 10pm that I realized I might be hungry again.  Rather than going to bed hungry as I often do, I decided to whip up a quick chicken chili.

1 chicken breast, cubed

2 tsp olive oil

¼ cup red onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

1 15oz can diced tomatoes (I used one with tomato, green pepper and celery)

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can red beans, drained and rinsed

5 tsp red chili powder (adjust depending on your tolerance for spice)

¼ cup chicken stock, optional

½ tsp cumin

½ tsp cinnamon

1 jalapeno, sliced

salt and black pepper to taste

Directions below the fold