White Bean, Turkey + Pancetta Chili
I'm SO excited to be sharing recipes here again. Oh my gosh!
I thought I was burnt out from it all, but, honestly, I really miss cooking and baking and sharing it here.
I'm still a little burnt out and I didn't have any plan to share a recipe on here this quick, but on Monday evening, C didn't have much homework and the kiddos were playing contently, so I decided to go ahead and make this meal that I've been LOVING and making A LOT this year and soon after I was cooking away, I thought, "I'm gonna share this on my blog!"
See...I told ya I'm getting my groove back!! WOOHOOO!!!
And wouldn't you know it...the kids never really needed me and they never had a clue that I was up on a chair snapping away.
SCOOOOOREEEEEE!!!! Ha!
D and I made Giadia's White Bean Chicken Chili once the weather turned cooler last fall.
I thought it was good, and I made another time after that, but, I realized I wasn't too keen on the white chicken part.
I'm kinda weird like that....I don't like chicken parmesan and I hate cheese on my chicken sandwich. I only like chicken legs, chicken thighs and chicken salad. I'm a dark meat kinda gal.
I had a thought on trying this recipe with ground turkey instead. I LOVED it.
I also had a thought on trying pancetta with it, too. I LOOOOVED it even more!
BUT....after I made this dish on Monday I realized that I totally FORGOT the pancetta!!
OMG!!! NOOOOOOOOO!!!! The pancetta is the BEST part!!
So, if you're like me, and you forget to add in pancetta, just dice it up, or buy the pre-diced package of it, and saute it up on the stove and then add it in.
But, you're not like me, just saute it up when you're sauteing the onions and garlic at the beginning of the recipe.
Seriously, it adds SO much flavor to this dish. SO much!!
Because I'm a dark meat, ground turkey lover, I feel like the ground turkey adds so much flavor than the ground white chicken does.
But, hey if you like ground white chicken, do that, too. All that matters is that you eat what YOU love and makes you go MMMMMMMMM!!! :)
After its all cooked up, I love to add some sour cream and shredded Parmesan cheese on top.
OH MY GOODNESS!!
It gets so creamy and cheesy. HEAVEN!
I'm also known for putting the Parmesan at the bottom of my bowl and then adding in the hot chili and then adding more Parmesan on top...I can't get enough of that cheesy goodness. YUM!!!!
I just learned awhile back how amazing parmesan cheese is when melted. OMG! I add it to all my soups now, too! Delicious!
So, yeah, the turkey, the pancetta, the white beans, the chicken stock, the swiss chard, the corn, the oregano, the cumin, the chili pepper and the parsley all mixed to together with the sour cream and the Parmesan cheese creates euphoria in my mouth!!
OH YEAH!!
But, oh gosh, that cheese though!! Told ya it melts wonderfully!!
Get in my belly! HA!
What I also LOVE about this dish is that it's a dish that I tend to look for as a busy mom...a one pot dish that makes TONS of leftovers!!
So, yeah, I made this on Monday and I've been eating it all week so far, and I'll even freeze whatever I don't eat for another time.
SO FREAKIN' AWESOME because life after picking up my kiddos after school isn't an easy one.
And if I do cook during that time, I either burn it, over cook it, forget to add an ingredient or it turns out AWFUL!
I'm NOT even kidding. #momlife
Now, as for my kiddos, C will take a few bites and Luca doesn't touch it at all.
But, it doesn't matter to me because at least the hubs and I have something homemade and oh, so delicious to eat on those crazy weekday nights when it's just too easy to get the same take out we've been getting for YEARS and are truly sick of. Ha!
Bon Appetit!
White Bean, Turkey + Pancetta Chili
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 pounds ground turkey
1 package pancetta
1 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons chili powder
3 tablespoons flour
2 to 3 (15-ounce cans) cannellini or other white beans, rinsed and drained
1 bunch (about 1 pound) Swiss chard, stems removed, leaves chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed
4 cups chicken stock
Freshly ground black pepper for seasoning
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 to 2 tablespoons sour cream
Directions
1. In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
2. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the pancetta and cook for about 5 minutes.
4. While the onions and pancetta is cooking, rinse beans if from a can and set aside and chop swiss chard.
4. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
5. Add the ground turkey 1 teaspoon salt, cumin, oregano, and chili powder. Cook, stirring frequently, until the turkey is cooked through, about 8 minutes.
6. Stir the flour into the turkey mixture.
7. Add the beans, Swiss chard, corn, and chicken stock. Bring the mixture to a simmer, scraping up the brown bits that cling to the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.
8. Simmer for 55-60 minutes until the liquid has reduced by about half and the chili has thickened.
9. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
10. Place into serving bowls.
11. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley.
12. Top with sour cream.
13. Enjoy!
Variations: Be sure to add in red pepper flakes if you want more of a spice. And, the original recipe from Giada De Laurentiis' White Chicken Chili called for fennel seeds, too, but, I'm not a fan of those, so I did omit them. And, yeah, my husband always has to add in way more spice because I'm not a big fan of spicy food at all. Drives him nuts. Ha! ;)
Until next time...
Life IS...loving what YOU eat and eating what YOU love! SAVOR it up! :)