Winter. Salad. Nachos. What do all of these things have in common? They go GREAT with chili. Of course, our biggest problem with chili is that the kids won’t eat it. It’s one of those heartbreaking things where you say, BUT I NEED THIS FOOD TO SURVIVE THE LONG COLD WINTER OF NEW ENGLAND, and yet they say that they just won’t eat a bite. It’s just so frustrating. So, when we were presented with an opportunity in the form of an evening where we had to dash out right after dinner for a school-related event and leave the kids with a sitter, we thought, “Why not make chili for ourselves and let the kids have the pizza they want?”

This chili is a crock pot mod of a recipe we’ve made for years, and it goes great over rice, nachos or just all by itself in a bowl. It does produce a good amount of liquid, so just make sure you use a slotted spoon when you get it out of the crock, if you’re putting it on nachos. This recipe also has the nice distinction of being pretty easy to make; you can also brown the turkey meat the night before and just put it in the fridge so that the prep that morning is just a matter of putting stuff in the crock and stirring well. Easy is good. Easy is your friend. Easy and tasty is just…SO NICE.

Chili in winter = very happy me

Prep Time: 15 mins (can easily be broken up into 10mins + 5 mins)

Cooking Time: 8-12hrs on LOW

Serves: 5-6

Ingredients

1-1/3 lbs ground turkey (usually comes in 20oz size packages)

19 oz can dark red kidney beans, undrained

19 oz can red kidney beans, undrained

14-1/2 oz can diced tomatoes, undrained

15 oz can tomato sauce

3 Tb chili powder

2 tsp garlic powder

optional toppings: sour cream, shredded monterey jack or cheddar cheese

Make it Happen

1. Brown ground turkey – this can be done the night before and then just stuck in the fridge if you want to spare the time in the morning. Drain any fat before storing or putting in the crock pot.

2. Add the turkey, beans (with liquid), tomatoes (with liquid), tomato sauce, chili powder and garlic powder to a 4qt crock pot; stir well to combine.

3. Cook on LOW for anywhere from 8-12 hrs.

4. Serve over rice, or in a bowl on its own (or nachos, because OMNOMNOM), with optional toppings if you so desire.