White Chicken Chili

Jimmie is telling everyone he 'took second place' at the annual church chili cookoff yesterday. They announced a winner (which was neither of us), but no second or third place awards were given. We both made a pot of chili - mine was white chicken chili; his was black bean elk chili.

All I'm going to say about our little competition is a) he went around telling everyone which was his chili, then asking them which one they liked best; b) every last drop of mine was eaten, while his had leftover; c) several people have asked for MY recipe. The defense submits the above to the jury for deliberation. :) We're not competitive. at all.

White Chicken Chili

8 cups [cooked] white northern beans (or 5 cans)
2 (4 oz) cans diced green chiles
3 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp oregano
1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
3 cooked chicken breasts, shredded
2 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, diced
4 cloves garlic, diced

Cook and drain the beans ahead of time. I put 2 lbs of white northern beans in the crockpot on high for about 2.5 hours.

Cook and shred chicken breast. This can also be done ahead of time and refrigerated.

Saute the onion and garlic in olive oil. Combine all ingredients to crock pot and heat on low for 3-4 hours. Add salt to taste.

For thicker and creamier chili, place 3 or 4 cups of the beans in a blender and puree.

Garnish with shredded cheese and tortilla chips (optional).

Cranberry Cornbread

I've been adding cranberries to everything lately. So, naturally, when it came time to make cornbread for the annual chili cookoff, I decided to make a sweet bread and add cranberries. It turned out pretty great.

Cranberry Cornbread

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2 cups flour
2 cups cornmeal
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups plain greek yogurt
2/3 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 can creamed corn
1 cup dried cranberries

In a large bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a large bowl, lightly beat eggs. Add/combine yogurt, milk, melted butter and creamed corn.

Add the flour mixture and stir until combined. Fold in dried cranberries.

Bake in a greased 9x13 pan at 400 degrees for 40 minutes, or until golden brown on edges.

Cran-Apple Walnut Crisp

There's a freeze warning tonight. We've turned the heater on. Fall is officially here. I had 6 'not-so-crunchy-anymore' apples in the fridge....and an idea. Here's my new spin on an old favorite.

Cran-Apple Walnut Crisp
preheat oven to 350

6 small apples, sliced thinly (skin on!)
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp corn starch
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice

*Mix ingredients and toss with apples. Place in an 8x8 casserole dish.

1/4 cup steel cut oats
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup butter, melted

*Combine ingredients and sprinkle on top of apple mixture.
*Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

These iPhone pictures don't do it justice.

Nutty, Crunchy, Apple-y goodness!

5 Minute Chicken Taco Soup

I woke up from a nap today in the mood for homemade soup....chicken fajita soup...but too hungry to take the time to thaw and cook chicken. ENTER canned chicken!

Soup is a wonderful way to use it because you can't tell it came from a can. This is a soup you can make entirely with things in your pantry.

5 Minute Chicken Taco Soup

8 cups water
8 cubes chicken boullion
1 can diced green chiles
1 13 oz can chunk chicken breast
1 can black beans [with jalapenos]
1 can corn
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 tsp onion powder
3 Tbsp lime juice

Bring to a boil and simmer a few minutes, breaking apart the chicken chunks.

Garnish with cilantro, crumbled tortilla chips, shredded cheese.

We inhaled it.

Greek Yogurt: 1% + vanilla bean

Good news: This homemade Greek Yogurt recipe works JUST AS WELL with 1% milk! Yippee!


This time I also added a vanilla bean to the milk while it heated. That is why you see black specs in this pictures. It has a very vanilla flavor.

This is after 16 hours of incubation in the oven.

You can see the whey pooling, as it hasn't yet been strained.

This scoop shows how thick the yogurt is before straining - holds its shape in a spoon.
Second scoop

This is 1 gallon of yogurt, just placed in the strainer.

This time I strained it for 6 hours and it seemed to be the same thickness as the 2% after 8 hours.

The yield from 1 gallon of 1% milk was 11 cups of yogurt and 5 cups of whey.

11 cups is 14 - 15 servings.

1 gallon of 1% milk was $2.69.

French Silk Chocolate Pie

Have you read 'The Help' by Kathryn Stockett? If not, you must!

This is my attempt at Minny's chocolate custard pie. I think I'll be making this for book club this month.

My Mom says she's never had a french silk chocolate pie that she liked, but she LIKED this one. So there. It is very rich and sweet, so I added Cool Whip to balance the flavor.

I used a regular pastry crust, but think this would also be yummy in an oreo cookie crust or in individual ramekins without crust at all.

A standing mixer (KitchenAid) comes in handy with this recipe, since there is 10 minutes of mixing the eggs.



2 oz unsweetened baking chocolate (melted, then cooled)
1/2 cup butter, softened (it must be real butter)
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs (or egg substitute)*
1 tsp vanilla
1 prepared pie crust
Cool Whip (optional)
Chocolate shavings (optional)


Melt the chocolate in a pan over hot water, then let it cool.


Cream the softened butter and gradually add in the sugar.


Stir in cooled chocolate and the vanilla.


Add 1 egg. Mix for 5 minutes on medium speed.


Add the second egg. Mix for 5 minutes on medium speed.


Pour custard into prepared pie crust and chill for at least 2 hours.


Serve with Cool Whip and chocolate shavings.


*Obviously, if you are pregnant or have a problem with raw eggs, you should use a pasteurized egg substitute.

Pumpkin Conundrum

Well, it's officially October, and with October comes PUMPKIN!

Have you ever opened a can of pumpkin puree, used 1/4 or 1/2 cup in a recipe, then wondered what to do with the rest?

I did last week. I knew I wouldn't be using it again during the week, so I loaded up two silicone ice cube trays and made pumpkin cubes. The silicone trays are great, because you can pop out the cubes by pushing the mold inside out. Just toss them in a ziploc bag and you have small amounts of pumpkin puree any time you need it.

I just had a vanilla-pumpkin protein shake after my run. YUM!

What do YOU do with your leftover pumpkin puree?