Family Cookbook- Janelle's White Chicken Chili

Today we're going to work with some leftovers. Making over your leftovers into something really delicious and totally different is not all that difficult. All you need a well stocked pantry and some great recipes and you can recycle your leftovers into something so delicious, no one would guess it's leftovers! 

Sitting in my fridge right now is a good two-thirds of a roast chicken. In a household of two a roast chicken normally provides a couple meals for us, and if I make enough of the sides, like stuffing, I am perfectly happy with a repeat of the same meal. This time we enjoyed our chicken with roasted vegetables and a salad so I now have a lot of chicken and a world of ideas of what to do with it. A couple weeks ago my daughters and I had our family baking day, and my daughter in law Janelle had a big crockpot simmering away with her award winning white chicken chili. Yes, award winning! Earlier in the season our company hosted a chili cook off and Janelle took first place with her creamy cheesy chili. I love this stuff!

I sat up my workstation right at the kitchen table- my chicken to pick, vegetables to chop and cheese to cut up, cans to open and my crockpot. Because I had such a large chicken, I had easily 3 cups of cubed chicken meat to use. You can also sub cooked chicken breast or thighs. The cut up chicken went into the crockpot first, followed by the diced onion and bell pepper. Janelle uses a yellow bell pepper when she makes her chili. I used a red bell purely for economic reasons. I stopped at the store to grab the few items I did not already have and yellow bells were $4 each, with red bells at $1.50 each, so red bell pepper it is! Next I cut up the cheese. I didn't have a box shredder in the drawer and didn't want to drag out the food processor. I just cut up the cheese into tiny cubes. Janelle uses half pepper jack and half Monterrey Jack, but I used all pepper jack since we like things spicier. I had roasted and diced some fresh Hatch chilies when they were in season so I got those out of the freezer and used those. 

The other ingredients were the real surprises to me. Jarred Alfredo sauce? Sounds bizarre but the creamy texture is exactly perfect for this hearty soup. Sour cream and chicken broth also go in the pot and white beans. I used canellini beans because I love them so much. Cumin goes in to bring the chili flavor out to the forefront and cayenne pepper to taste- add sparingly at first as it will intensify. Finally, a couple cups of corn kernels, another item this Iowa girl always has in her freezer, and it's ready for a slow simmer in the crock pot to meld all the flavors into creamy perfection. I'm not so sure I can wait patiently for this chili to cook!!

Janelle's White Chicken Chili

3 cups cooked cubed chicken

1 jar alfredo sauce

1 cup sour cream

2 cups chicken broth

1 can diced green chilies

one medium onion, diced

one bell pepper diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups frozen corn kernels

3 cans canellini or other white beans, drained and rinsed

2 cups shredded pepper jack cheese 

1 tablespoon cumin

cayenne pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a large crockpot. Cover and cook on Low 4-5 hours. 

I made tortilla strips to serve with our chili. It's super easy to do and much more economical than purchasing ready made tortilla strips. They are great to have on had for soups, chili and salads too. Start with a package of fresh corn tortillas or make your own if you can. Brush the tortillas lightly with olive oil.

I used olive oil that had been muddled with a couple slices of jalapeno for a little extra heat. Stack the tortillas and cut into strips with a sharp knife. Spread out onto a parchment lined baking sheet and pop in a 400 degree oven. 

WATCH CAREFULLY! They crisp quickly and can burn in the blink of an eye. Allow to cool then store in an airtight container.

Serve the chili with the tortilla strips or any other garnish you like- sour cream, shredded cheese, chopped cilantro or a lime slice, or even a little bit of all of that!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free as part of a random drawing. There was no requirement of using the products and then providing written promotion. This post is entirely of my own writing. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I believe are of good quality and safe. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Product Review- Skyline Cincinnati Chili

Every region has its favorite foods. Whether local restaurant specialties or produce that's unique to the area chances are you can associate a food of some sort with everywhere you've been. Think of Hawaii and you probably think of pineapple. Coastal states from Maine to Florida to Texas on the Gulf coast boast seafood those of us in the landlocked states cannot imagine. I live in Iowa and we are always associated with Iowa corn, especially sweet corn, and juicy and delicious Iowa pork. We're famous for it. Pork tenderloin sandwiches bigger than your dinner plate are served all over Iowa and different cities have different favorites. Here in Des Moines the most famous local dish is hands down Steak DeBurgo. While many restaurants have their own version, the original recipe belongs to Johnny and Kay's in the old Hyatt House hotel.

Having traveled extensively and lived in numerous places I've experienced lots of different regional favorites. One that always intrigued me was Cincinnati chili. A couple years ago a friend opened a small restaurant here and that was their big feature- pizza and Cincinnati chili. I'd heard of this chili and knew how it was served but it was something I had never been all that interested in trying. The lingo was so foreign- a two-way, three-way, four-way. Who thinks this stuff up?

Fast forward a few years and I am finally introduced to Cincinnati chili from an expert- my friend Katie. Having family in Cincinnati Katie visits there all the time and of course, gets her chili fix. Skyline Chili, Katie tells me, is THE home of original Cincinnati chili, and besides having lots of locations for their restaurant, they also package and sell the chili for you to make at home. During one of her visits to Ohio, Katie stocked up on Skyline Chili and shared some with me when she returned home. She sent me home with several cans of Skyline and thorough directions on how to prepare it the right way. Spaghetti. Beans. Chopped onions. Shredded cheese. Lots of shredded cheese. The plan was to go home and have the traditional Skyline Four Way, spaghetti, red beans, chopped onions and a mountain of shredded cheese.

Dinner time came and I heated up the chili. It has an unusual smell- not like chili I am used to, but a sweet cinnamony-clovy fragrance. The meat is very broken down, as one of the unusual techniques in making this dish is to start with uncooked ground beef and cook it in the liquids, which breaks the meat down into tiny pieces- no big clumps of burger. The consistency of the chili is also very thin, again unlike the thicker robust chili I am used to. Once the spaghetti was cooked it was time to plate up our Skylie chili. Pile of pasta in the bowl, pour over the chili, add beans, chopped onion and top with a pile of finely shredded cheddar cheese.

The verdict? It was ok. I didn't hate it but I didn't love it either. I missed the heat and the chili flavors I am used to. The cinnamon and cloves were definitely big in the flavor profile and it just was not a combination with the meat and tomato and onions and beans. I put what I thought was a big pile of cheese on the plate, and Katie said it wasn't enough cheese- but honestly any more than that would have been way too much for me. 

On another night we tried Skyline on chili dogs and I liked it even less. The consistency of the chili is too thin for my taste, and made the bun too soggy. Maybe I'm just stuck in my ways but I missed the richness, thickness and spice of chili con carne on my chili dog.

So Skyline, I like you just fine, but you didn't change my life like I thought you might, and that's perfectly ok.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

The Chill Air of Autumn

I've been seeing it all over the news- that word that brings so much dread to others, yet so much JOY to me- SNOW !!!!! 8 inches of snow in Denver the other day, a massive winter storm to the east. What do I have to do to get a little flake action in my part of the world ???

Since moving to the lake in March, we really haven't experienced any real winter weather. We had a couple snows, an inch or two at the most, but it was always gone by the next day. Nothing to even shovel. Shoveling snow is my favorite thing in the world. Pile on my coat, warm shoes, hat and mitties and hit the driveway. The peace and serenity is just so incredible. It's like I'm the only person on the planet (except sometimes I hear the far-off drone of some snowblower but that will probably be less likely out here at the lake. The weekenders won't be here to worry about the snow). That's the Minnesota girl in me. I'm sooo looking forward to the first REAL snowfall at the lake.

Even though we don't have any snow yet, the boats are all out of the water and driving through the area I see people tuning up and preparing their winter toys- snowmobiles, 4 wheelers. A frozen lake is a playground just as much as the summer water.

One of the best things about this time of year is the "winter food". I love anything that simmers all day, roasts for hours, filling the home with the scents of something delicious to come. Tonight on the menu it's chili. And I've been sampling- it's going to be a killer !!!!

As always, we start with the best quality ingredients we can get. No, not talking a slab of Kobe beef or Wagyu steak or anything like that, but we picked out a nice boneless roast, trimmed it myself, and cut into small cubes. Not big beef stew cubes, but smaller dice, pea size or so. Sometimes we like ground beef instead, sometimes I've even used both in the same pot. I'd even give a pork roast a shot in the chili pot. Ground turkey ? Maybe.....

One medium yellow onion, chopped, a few cloves of garlic, chopped, a small bell pepper, chopped, and a diced habanero all went in the pot with a little hit of olive oil and the meat. As soon as the onion was softened nicely, a quart of home canned tomatoes, can of tomato juice, about 1/2 cup of tomato paste, a handful of our dried tomatoes (you could use sun dried tomatoes or omit this if you'd like), salt, pepper, chili powder and a SMALL bit, like 1/2 tsp. or less, of crushed dried ghost chile went into the pot to simmer.

It's only been a couple hours at this point and I'm already anxiously awaiting dinnertime !!

We served the chili with shredded cheese sprinkled on top and crackers instead of cornbread this time. It was sooooo rich and thick and tomatoey and spicy all at the same time. And it was spicy !! Not melt-your-face-off spicy but it warmed me up nicely.

Absolutely perfect for a cool fall night with scary movies on all the channels. In fact, right now I'm home by myself watching Halloween H20, and very bravely I might add !!!!  I don't like scary movies !!! And I'll say this much, if I hear a strange noise in the dark back yard, or the neighbors dogs bark away at an unknown something, I will NOT be putting on a pair of high heels and heading out in the darkness armed with a candle and a screwdriver !!!

Before I go enjoy another bowl of chili, I'll share one more look at the lake in winters past.
(all pictures are courtesy of http://www.diamondheadlake.org/)  I cannot wait to have a few pictures of my own to share !!