White Bean Chicken Chili

Fall has officially arrived!  After longer than usual summer weather the clouds, wind, and rain arrived yesterday.  I'm so excited to start cooking soups, stews, and chilis again!

Tonight's dinner is a slight modification of Giada De Laurentiis's recipe.  The main differences are the chicken and omission of swiss chard.  Daryl wouldn't like it with the 'green stuff' in there.  Here's a list of the changes I made:

• 1 rotisserie chicken, meat pulled off rather than ground chicken (still let chicken/seasonings cook/warm a few minutes before adding the liquid ingredients);
• Instead of oregano I used Italian seasoning;
• No swiss chard;
• Instead of adding beans with all the other ingredients, waited a half hour so they wouldn't break down as much;
• Added 1/4 cup heavy cream at the same time I added the beans;
• Covered half way through so it wouldn't thicken/reduce too much;
• Omitted parsley (only because I didn't have any - that 'green stuff' would have been ok).

The picture doesn't look great -- I forgot to wipe down the sides of the bowl - but trust me the chili tasted amazing.  We had it with a side of toasted baguette bread.  Yum!  Thanks Giada!

~ Enjoy ~

p.s. to see more about the table runner peeking out in this picture, click here.

Chicken Chili

After a few days in the mid 60's with abundant sunshine, the clouds and rain reappeared.  Tonight was perfect for a quick, healthy chili.  The original recipe calls for canned tomatillos, and while I would love to use fresh, the ingredients in this recipe are typically in my pantry so I can whip this up on a cool night.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (14oz) can chicken broth, divided
1 (16oz) jar salsa verde
2 (15oz) cans petite diced tomatoes
1 (7oz) can diced green chiles
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seed
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
2-3 teaspoons chili powder
1-2 cups corn
1 rotisserie chicken, meat pulled and shredded
2 (15oz) cans white beans (great northern or cannellini work well)
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in a stock pot or dutch oven and cook onion and garlic until soft.

Stir most of the broth (reserving 1/4 cup for a roux), salsa verde, tomatoes, chiles, and spices.  Bring to a boil, then let simmer about 30 minutes.  While simmering, made a roux* from the remaining stock with 1 tablespoon flour and a little 1/2 and 1/2 (or milk).  Add the roux to the simmering pot. Add chicken, corn and beans.  Continue to cook until heated through or lower heat until ready to serve.

Garnish ideas: sour cream (I use plain greek yogurt), crushed tortilla chips, shredded cheese, cornbread, fresh cilantro

* Heat the roux in a small saucepan to cook out the raw flour taste before adding it to the chili

Recipe adapted from: White Bean Chicken Chili