Chicken Chipotle Rainbow Chili

My current obsession with ground chipotle spawned this chili. I'm thinking of carrying a little chipotle pouch with me at all times, and sprinkling it on everything I eat. I'm addicted.

Soups, stews, and chilis are the most reliable way for me to cram as many veggies as I can into the girls,  plus they're my favorite things to make. They're very forgiving toward my "throw in a little of this," "add a pinch of that" style of cooking, and there is something so comforting about dipping a warm chunk of bread or tortilla into a bowl of hot, soupy love. You know it's true.

I used the veggies I had on hand here, but really anything will do. The hominy, though - that's a must.



Prep Time: 20 mins (mostly chopping)
Cook Time: 30 mins (the more the better, obviously - this is an excellent slow-cooker candidate. I made this right before it was time to take the girls to gymnastics, and kept it on simmer for the hour we were there. When we got home, we ate, and it was perfect.)
Number of Ingredients: 14


1 lb ground chicken
1/4 white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp cumin, or more to taste
1 tbsp ground oregano
1-3 tsps ground chipotle powder, to taste
1/2 bottle beer (literally anything will do - I used Beck's cuz Mike randomly bought it)
1 14 oz can fire-roasted diced tomatoes + juice
1 4 oz can diced Ortega chilies
1 28 oz can hominy, drained
1 large carrot, chopped into half moons
1 large red pepper, diced
2 cups frozen fire-roated corn kernals
2-4 cups chicken or veggie broth

Cilantro, cheddar, hot sauce, sour cream, lime, avocado chunks for garnish.

Heat a couple tbsps olive oil in a large pot or dutch oven. Sautee onion and garlic until fragrant, about a minute. Add chicken, carrots, peppers, and spices, and break chicken up with wooden spoon as it cooks. When chicken is almost done, but still a bit pink, add beer. When foam cooks off and beer starts bubbling, add tomatoes, hominy, Ortega chilies and corn. Add 2 cups of broth to keep this on the chunky side, 4 to make it more of a soup. Simmer as long as possible to develop flavors.

Garnish with whatever you like (if you're me, a ton of extra chipotle), and serve with cheddar quesadillas and ice cold beer. Because eating Mexican-flavored food without beer is INSANE.

Chicken Cacciatori 2.0

This is a quick, weeknight version of the classic Chicken Cacciatorra, sped up and streamlined. Using ground chicken instead of chicken thighs means my version is lighter than its traditional cousin, and quicker-cooking to boot, and using lots of herbs gives it a slow-cooked flavor. Simmering the whole pot uncovered at the end gives the sauce time to reduce, and the flavors time to develop.

This is the kind of warm, filling retro-fabulous dish that I love most in the winter. It hits the proverbial spot.


Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins (plus another 15-20 mins to simmer)
Number of Ingredients: 12


1/4 cup pancetta cubes (or 3 slices of bacon, chopped)
1 tbsp oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 scallions, white and light green parts only (green tops reserved for garnish)
1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped + 1 tbsp Herbes de Provence
1 lb. ground chicken
1/2 tsp celery salt
1/2 cup white wine
1 14-oz. can diced tomatoes + juice
2 bay leaves
1 tsp sugar
1 14-oz cannellini beans, rinsed and drained


Heat oil over medium in a large pot or dutch oven, and add pancetta or bacon. When it starts to crisp and brown, remove from pan with slotted spoon and reserve. Add garlic, scallions and rosemary and cook until fragrant, stirring often, about 1 minute. Add chicken, season with salt, pepper and celery salt. Using the back of your spoon, break the ground meat into chunks as it browns, about 3 minutes. Add wine, taking care to scrape up the lovely brown bits from the bottom of the pan.  Bring the whole thing to a bubble, then add tomatoes, bay leaves, Herbes de Provence, sugar and beans. Simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes, until sauce reduces by about half.

Sprinkle with the green scallion tops and reserved crispy pancetta or bacon, and serve with hot buttered egg noodles, or rice.