Fall is here!
To welcome it's arrival, I made Turkey Pumpkin Chili in my slow cooker. The pumpkin is very delicate in flavor; not overly sweet, but adds heartiness and a beautiful hue to the chili.
While some meats can go directly into your slow cooker, turkey has to be cooked and seasoned beforehand. As you will see below, after cooking my turkey, I always run in through my food processor. I like a lot of flavor in my meat and since turkey is hard to break up finely, I find that this extra step allows allows the flavors to truly saturate the meat. You can skip this step and just break up your turkey with spoon.
These ingredients do not add exceptional heat, but you can kick it up by adding some cayenne pepper or chopped jalapenos. Depending on your household size, you might have quite a bit of leftovers, but
not to worry...it freezes great!
Ingredients:
- Cooking spray (I use Pam)
- 2 pounds 99% lean turkey (I use white turkey breast)
- 1/2 tsp. olive oil
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 1/2 tsp. chili powder (add more to taste)
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 1/2 tsp. cumin
- 2 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. oregano
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 (15 oz.) cans white northern/navy beans, drained
- 15 oz. can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 2 (4.5 oz.) cans diced green chilies
- 2 cups (1 can) low-sodium, fat free chicken broth
- Fat free sour cream (optional)
- Chopped cilantro (optional)
- Monterey jack cheese, shredded (optional)
- Crushed tortilla chips (optional)
Directions:
Heat a large frying pan over high heat and lightly mist with your cooking spray. Add the turkey meat, breaking up with a wooden spoon until meat is thoroughly cooked (about 5 minutes.)
If desired, placed cooked turkey meat into a food processor. Pulse for a few seconds until meat in finely ground up.
Transfer the turkey back to the frying pan and add your olive oil. Stir in the garlic and chopped onion. Mix well and saute for 3-4 minutes. Every cook has their preferences. One of mine is using Christopher Ranch chopped garlic in water. 2 tsp. = 1 garlic clove.
Next, add your cumin and onion powder and saute another minute or so.
Take your turkey and onion mixture and pour into the slow cooker. Add your beans to the meat. I always rinse my beans to lessen the sodium content.
After the beans, add the pumpkin puree, diced green chilies, chili powder, oregano, and bay leaves.
Mix well, add salt and pepper to taste. At this point, I usually add more cumin, chili or onion powders. It is up your taste buds and level of desired spice flavor.
Once the chili is mixed well, cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours. Top with your favorite toppings: cilantro (this can also be added when cooking.) shredded jack cheese, sour cream, crushed tortilla chips, etc. This pairs well with cornbread and honey butter. The possibilities are endless!
Happy Eating!
*This recipe has been adapted from Skinnytaste.com
