Chili

Now that it's after Labor Day, and the weather should start cooling off soon (we hope!), it's time to start thinking of autumn and winter-y foods. That includes chili.

I have so many good memories that deal with chili. Here's hoping one of today's offerings become one of your good-memory recipes. Will it be Hearty Turkey Chili? How about the Chipotle Chili Non-Carne? Whichever chili recipe you decide to try, just remember to Enjoy!

SLOW COOKER SWEET AND SPICY CHILI

This recipe is from Kellie Hemmerly on TODAY’s, and begins, “This Sweet and Spicy Chili is made in the slow cooker for deep, concentrated flavor. The BEST chili recipe around, I use a secret ingredient to create a sweet-tart background to this slightly spicy recipe.”

Kellie’s website, The Suburban Soapbox, looks pretty cool; I recommend checking it out!

Anyway, to view this recipe online, click here.

Servings: 1 cup; Yield: 10-12 servings; Prep Time: 20 min; Cooking Time: 4 hr

Ingredients

2 pounds ground beef (I used 80-20)

1 large onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

5 garlic cloves, minced

2 large jalapeno peppers, minced (remove the seeds and veins for less heat...leave them for more heat)

1/4 cup chili powder

3 tablespoons ground cumin

3 tablespoons ground cayenne pepper

2 tablespoon crushed red pepper

6 ounce jar of chopped sweet peppers and juice

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 - 28 ounce can tomato sauce

1 - 28 ounce can crushed fire roasted tomatoes

salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

In a large frying pan, brown the ground beef until no longer pink and transfer to the slow cooker using a slotted spoon. Drain off all but two tablespoons of fat and add the onions to the pan. Cook the onions over med-high heat until they begin to soften. Add the peppers to the onions and sauté until softened. Add the garlic and jalapeno peppers, cooking for one minute longer. Transfer the mixture to the slow cooker with the beef.

Add the chili powder, cumin, cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper, sweet peppers and juice to the beef mixture and stir to combine. Add the brown sugar, tomato sauce and crushed tomatoes stirring thoroughly to be sure all the ingredients are incorporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste and cook in the slow cooker on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours.

Serve with your favorite chili toppings, we love greek yogurt, sour cream, shredded cheddar, green onions, and pickled jalapenos...just to name a few.

TEXAS-STYLE CHILI

This is from Vegetarian Times, and begins, "Texas-style chili is a bean-free stew that’s usually made with chunks of slow-cooked beef. Here, eggplant stands in for meat in the traditional thick, spicy sauce. Serve with chopped green onions, cilantro, jalapeño, tomato, shredded cheese, sour cream, and corn chips." Makes 6 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/texas-style-chili/.

Ingredients

3 mulato or pasilla dried chiles

2 costeno dried chiles

1 cascabel dried chile

2 Tbs. olive oil

1 red bell pepper, cut into chunks

1 medium onion, cut into chunks

4 cloves garlic, peeled

1 15-oz. can whole tomatoes

1 1/2 Tbs. chili powder

2 tsp. light brown sugar or 1 tsp. molasses, optional

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. dried oregano

4 medium Japanese eggplant, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks

2 Tbs. masa harina

Preparation

Place dried chiles in medium bowl, and cover with 1 1/2 cups boiling water. Let stand 20 minutes, or until soft, pushing chiles under water occasionally. Let liquid cool until chiles are easy to handle.

Remove tough stems and seeds from rehydrated chiles, using soaking liquid to rinse away seeds. Coarsely chop chiles, and strain liquid to remove seeds. Set aside.

Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper, onion, and garlic, and sear 1 to 2 minutes, or until beginning to brown. Add chiles with soaking liquid, tomatoes with juice, chili powder, brown sugar (if using), cumin, oregano, and 4 cups water. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Cover, and simmer 30 minutes.

Remove pot from heat, and blend chiles and vegetables with immersion blender until smooth. Stir in eggplant chunks, then cover pot, and simmer 30 minutes over medium heat, or until eggplant is tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in masa harina, and season with salt and pepper, if desired.

CHIPOTLE CHILI NON-CARNE

This is from Vegetarian Times, and begins, "This spicy chili really warms the bones on a cold evening. Chipotle powder is made from smoked jalapeño peppers. Look for it in specialty gourmet stores. To make the chili milder, omit the chipotle powder and reduce the chili powder to two teaspoons. MEAL PLAN: Delicious with cornbread. Add a tossed green salad with low-fat bottled cilantro dressing."

Makes 6 servings; Time: 30 minutes or less

To view this online, go to https://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/chipotle-chili-non-carne/.

Ingredients

1 tsp. olive oil

1 cup finely chopped onion

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 green or yellow bell pepper, chopped

1 cup frozen corn

1/4 tsp. chipotle chile powder or to taste

1 Tbs. chili powder

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. dried oregano

3 (15-oz.) cans black beans, rinsed and drained

14 1/2-oz. can diced tomatoes

Preparation

In large saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, 2 minutes. Add bell pepper and corn and cook, stirring often, 2 minutes. Stir in chipotle powder, chili powder, cumin and oregano and cook 1 minute. Stir in beans, tomatoes and 3/4 cup water.

Reduce heat, partially cover pan and simmer, stirring occasionally, 20 minutes. If chili becomes too thick, add 1/4 cup hot water. Add salt and pepper to taste. If desired, sprinkle chili with shredded cheese before serving.

TURKEY CHILI VERDE

Recipe Yield: Yield: 4 servings

Source: Honeysuckle White

View this online at https://diabeticgourmet.com/diabetic-recipes/turkey-chili-verde.

Ingredients

1 package (about 1 pound) Honeysuckle White Turkey Breast Tenderloins

1 pound tomatillos

2 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 medium white onion, chopped

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

1 tablespoon minced garlic

Salt and black pepper

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Optional: Corn or flour tortillas (not included in nutritional information)

Directions

Cut turkey into 1/2-inch cubes.

Remove papery husks from tomatillos; rinse tomatillos in hot water and cut into quarters.

In large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add turkey; cook about 5 minutes or until it turns white.

With slotted spoon, transfer turkey to large saucepan.

Add bell pepper, onion, jalapeno and garlic to same skillet; season with salt and pepper.

Cook about 5 minutes or until vegetables start to soften.

Add vegetables and tomatillos to saucepan with turkey; bring to a simmer. Cover and cook over low heat about 30 minutes or until turkey is tender. If there is too much liquid, uncover and simmer until liquid has cooked down.

Add cilantro; serve with rice, corn or flour tortillas, if desired.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 240; Fat: 9 g; Saturated Fat: 1 g; Fiber: 3 g; Sodium: 60 mg; Cholesterol: 70 mg; Protein: 30 g; Carbohydrates: 11 g; Sugars: 6 g

BIG GAME CHILIL

This comes from Bush's® Best, and begins, "Your friends will become big fans of this hearty chili recipe made with two types of Bush's® Chili Beans. Garnish with chopped green onions and sour cream for added flavor. These recipes were created with our gluten-free friends in mind."

Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: 25 minutes; Makes 10 cups

To view this online, go to https://www.bushbeans.com/en_US/bean-recipes/big-game-chili.

Ingredients

1 lb lean ground beef

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup chopped green bell pepper

1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes

1 can (6 oz) tomato paste

1/2 cup water

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 tsp salt

1 Tbsp chili powder

2 tsp oregano

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 can (16 oz) Bush's® Chili Beans

1 can (16 oz) Bush's® Dark Red Kidney Beans

Garnish

Chopped green onion

Sour cream

Directions

In large pan, cook beef, onion, and green pepper until meat is browned. Drain excess grease.

Stir in remaining ingredients, except green onion and sour cream.

Bring to boil.

Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes.

Garnish with green onion and dollop of sour cream.

HEARTY TURKEY CHILI

This comes from GE Appliances and can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey

1 medium onion, chopped

2-15oz. cans chili-ready beans in chili gravy

1-12oz bottle beer (can use non-alcoholic)

1-14 1/2 oz can diced tomatoes (chili ready)

1/2 c. chili sauce

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning

1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Directions

In a large saucepan, brown turkey and onion over medium/high heat until turkey is no longer pink and onions are tender.

Add meat to slow cooker.

Stir in undrained beans, beer, undrained tomatoes, chili sauce, chili powder, Cajun seasoning and garlic salt.

Cook in slow cooker on low for 4 hours.

CHEF'S NOTES:

If you are in a hurry, you can add the ingredients to a Dutch oven, cover and cook on stovetop over medium heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Flavors will not develop as fully, but dinner is done much quicker!