Bec's Turkey & Chile Chili

First, a few photos of the girls.  It's been really fun to watch their relationship develop.  Little is always in Big's shadows (literally like the first picture shows) but she manages to squeeze out a space for herself.  She can't wait for Big to come home from Pre-K and whenever she sees Big for the first time in the morning, she's just tall enough to give her a huge hug around the neck.  Big, to her credit, is doing pretty great with sharing, watching out for Little, interpreting her babbling, and constantly telling us that Little is "the cutest baby EVER.  And I mean it.  Have you ever seen a cuter baby?"

Trying so hard to help out

Finally manages to squeeze next to big and add a spoonful of something by herself.  By herself is a very important concept these days, much to my frustration at times.

Best buddies

Okay.  Now, onto the food:  after playing around with a few different recipes I've made in the past and wanting to turn up the heat a bit, this chili was the result.  We all liked it and you can make it more spicy by increasing the amount of pasilla chile, adding diced jalapenos, or adding red pepper flakes (which we did at the table).  You can make it less spicy by using regular diced tomatoes without the green chiles.

I've got a busy but fun week leading up to Thanksgiving so I'm not sure if I'll be posting.  If not, may your turkey be juicy, your half of the wishbone be longer, and your heart be thankful.  If you're reading this, I'm thankful for you!

Turkey & Chile Chili (4 servings)

3/4 lb ground turkey
1/2 c. diced onion
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 pasilla chile (or poblano), diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (15oz) can cannellini beans (or pinto)
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 T chile powder
1 T tomato paste
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano
1 T freshly squeezed lime juice
cilantro

Put the turkey, onion, bell pepper, pasilla chile and garlic into a pot and saute until the turkey is no longer pink and the onion is soft.  Add the beans, tomatoes, broth, tomato paste and seasonings.  Let it come to a boil.  Reduce heat to and simmer for 15-20 minutes.  Remove from the heat, stir in the lime juice and sprinkle with cilantro before serving.