White Chicken Chili
Warm weather and fabulous produce are making their way into Georgia (I am SO excited about spring veggies and new recipes)!! But, before asparagus season is in full force, I have 2 great, satisfying soup/stew/chili recipes that I want to share to get you through the last cold front of the season :)
This chili recipe is one of my favorites. Its incredibly easy but it tastes like you slaved away for hours! It’s both light and filling at the same time…its hearty with lots of delicious flavor from the hominy and green chillies and full of protein and fiber from the chicken and white beans- its definitely a crowd pleaser and it freezes really well…what’s not to love?!
White Chicken Chili
8-12 servings
1/2 C onion, chopped
1 C celery, chopped
1 C potato, chopped
1 t salt
1 t cumin powder
1 lb ground white meat chicken (you can use turkey too)
1 T sugar
4 cans white northern beans
2 cans white hominy
1 small can diced green chillies
1/2 t pepper
2 cans chicken stock
In a large pot over medium heat, sauté the onion, celery, potato and salt for 5 minutes.
Now, add the ground chicken and ground cumin and cook for 5 more minutes.
Now for the easy part! Add the sugar and then the cans of white beans, the hominy, green chillies, the pepper and the chicken stock.
Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes.
Store in the fridge or freeze for later use!
Roasted Winter Vegetable CousCous
In the winter, root vegetables take center stage on our dinner plates. I LOVE the bitter sweetness provided by parsnips, turnips, radishes and rutabaga. I love the creamy texture of sweet potatoes and the rich earthiness of caramelized onions. Many nights, I find myself chopping large amounts of beautiful root veggies and simply throwing them on a pan to roast- this week, I tossed them with some whole wheat cous cous, a few herbs, and a little olive oil and we enjoyed a beautiful bowl of wintery, roasted goodness. This dish takes about 5 minutes of effort. Throw the veggies in the oven to roast, make the cous cous, top it with herbs…wha-la!
Roasted Root Vegetable Cous Cous
2 carrots, cut into 1″ pieces
2 celery stalks, cut into 1″ pieces
1 C potatoes, cut into 1″ pieces
1 C sweet potato, cut into 1″ pieces
1 C turnips, cut into 1″ pieces
1 C onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 t olive oil
1 1/2 C whole wheat cous cous
2 C water
1 t salt
1 t oregano
1 T mint
1 T basil
1 t lemon zest
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cut the carrots, celery, potatoes, sweet potatoes and turnips into 1″ pieces and put them on a cookie sheet. Spray the tops with olive oil cooking spray and season with salt and pepper. Place them in the oven to roast for about 40 minutes.
While the veggies are cooking, in a medium pot over medium heat sautee the onion and garlic in olive oil. Now, add the cous cous and sautee until it starts to slightly toast. Now, add the salt and the water. Bring to a boil and then remove from the heat and cover. Let stand for 5 minutes and then using a fork, fluff the mixture.
When the veggies have finished roasting, gently toss them into the cous cous.
Now, add the oregano, mint, basil and lemon zest. Toss together and serve.
**You can sub any of your favorite herbs and veggies in this recipe.
**I topped our cous cous with chopped walnuts and cranberries. YUM!
Posted on March 6, 2012 by LindsayTarquinio · 0 comments Read MoreChicken-Pot-Pasta
It might be 80 and sunny here in J’Bay- but in a few days we are headed back home and back into winter, meaning, I will once again start to crave the warm, hearty flavors of comfort food. When I think of comfort food, the first thing that pops into my head is my mom’s chicken pot pie. Oh-My-Goodness…it is Unbelievably good! Growing up, I would request chicken pot pie whenever I had the chance and when I walked in the door to the smell of flaky, buttery crust baking in the oven, my heart would flutter just a little :)
I came up with this version of chicken pot pie after my mom requested a healthy version of the decadent dish. I am in NO way going to claim that this version is anything close to the way mamma used to make it but, it is creamy, rich (tasting) and perfectly comforting on a cold winter day!
Chicken-Pot-Pasta
serves 8
1 t olive oil
1/2 C carrots, diced
1/2 C celery, diced
1/2 C onion, diced
2 chicken breast, diced
1 t sea salt
1 t fresh ground pepper
1/4 C flour
1 can chicken stock
1 C milk
1 C frozen green peas
4 C (uncooked) whole wheat rotini, cooked al dente
In a large pan over medium heat, sauté the onion, celery and carrot in the olive oil until slightly tender, about 5 minutes. Now, add the diced chicken breast and cook for about 5 more minutes.
Season the mixture with salt and pepper. Now add the flour. It will be thick and goopy but stir the mixture until the veggies are coated and cook, stirring constantly for 3 minutes. Now, add the can of chicken stock and stir very well until all of the flour has dissolved. Add the milk and bring to a simmer. Allow this to cook for 10 minutes, until the sauce begins to thicken.
Next, stir in the peas and cook until the peas are tender, about 2 minutes.
Pour the sauce over your prepared whole wheat rotini noodles and serve!
Moroccan Stuffed Butternut Squash
It seems like whenever the plane touches South African soil, I start craving butternut squash. Gavin and I eat butternut a good bit at home, but here in J’Bay, the lovely orange squash is available year-round and always tastes completely perfect. Here, it is often made in to soup, like this one that Ria taught me on one of my first trips to Africa…but one of my favorite ways to enjoy this vitamin rich food is to stuff it and make a meal out of it!
Now, I know that we are in South Africa- at the complete opposite end of the continent and in a culture a million miles away- but I LOVE to pair Moroccan flavors with butternut squash…so, although this dish is inspired by my love for butternut that started in SA, it celebrates flavors that span the continent!
Stuffed Butternut Squash with Moroccan Spiced Tomatoes
1 Medium butternut squash, cut in half length wise, seeds removed
1 C onion, chopped
1 C green pepper, chopped
1/2 C celery, chopped
1/2 C whole wheat cous cous
1 C water
2 cloves garlic
1 t sea salt
1 t oregano
Moroccan Spiced Tomatoes
2 C canned diced tomato
1/2 t cinnamon
1/4 t coriander, ground
1/4 t cumin, ground
1/4 t tumeric, ground
1/8 t nutmeg, ground
1 T brown sugar
1/2 t sea salt
1 clove garlic, crushed
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. To prepare your butternut squash, wash the outside well. Cut it in half, length wise and scoop out the seeds. Spray the flesh side with olive oil cooking spray and season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for 40 minutes, flesh side up.
While the butternut is roasting, prepare the stuffing. In a medium pot over medium heat coated in olive oil spray, sauté the onion, pepper and celery for 5 minutes. Now, add the cous cous and cook until slightly browned, stirring constantly, about 3 minutes. Now, add the water, garlic and salt. Bring to a boil. As soon as the water boils, remove the pot from the heat and cover.
To make the tomatoes: In a medium pan over medium heat, combine all ingredients and allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes.
When the squash is finished roasting, fill each side with half of the cous cous mixture and top with sauce. I also added a few chopped walnuts. It is wonderful topped with feta or goat cheese and greek yogurt as well!
