Mexican

Loaded with fresh ground turkey, beans, and vegetables, and simmered in a rich, tomato broth. Turkey Taco Chili is healthy, hearty, flavorful and easy to make! Pile on the fixings and dive into a warm bowl of chili goodness.

Hi! Thanks for visiting again! I hope you had a wonderful weekend. It was actually quite a big week around here for us. My birthday was Wednesday and Andrew took the day off of work. I can’t even begin to say how much he did to make me feel more than loved for my special day. He kicked off the celebration by bringing me two dozen pink roses the night before. On my birthday, I woke up to the house decorated and picked up, a hot breakfast, and the sweetest card. I was even treated to a mid-morning nap while Andrew watched the boys so I could get a few extra birthday zzzzs. Birthday fest continued with Grandma and Grandpa Lovasz coming over at 11:00am to watch the big boys, while Andrew and I (and Charlie) headed out to lunch, a day of shopping, and a special celebration dinner. We all had such a great day! William and James had so much fun playing and being spoiled by their wonderful Grandparents. Andrew and I were thrilled to have an entire afternoon AND evening (almost) just the two of us. We had a delicious and very fun lunch at Crispelli’s, where we enjoyed margarita pizzas and salads.

Then we headed onward to Somerset Mall do ~~a little~~ a lot of birthday shopping. After a while, we decided to refuel with a little birthday Starbucks. Wow, I think we forgot how amazing it feels to sip a hot drink with each other on a weekday afternoon and talk, just us. After our snack break, we continued on with our shopping. Andrew planned out our entire shopping trip, complete with a map and everything! I was totally impressed! And definitely spoiled 😉 After all of our shopping fun, we headed to Ocean Prime for the most wonderful dinner. For dinner we enjoyed a crab and shrimp salad, ribeye steak with a giant twice baked potato, and a special chocolate peanut butter mousse pie for dessert. Deeeelicious!!! I am so thankful for such an incredible day! 🙂

When you don’t have the night off from cooking, grab this recipe and head to the kitchen. We just love this Turkey Taco Chili and I’m sure you will too! It’s delightfully delicious, incredibly nutritious, and super duper easy to make. Such a winning combination!

My inspiration for this recipe came from Skinny Taste’s Turkey Chili Taco Soup. I came across this chili a few months back, when I was scouring the internet for ideas of freezer friendly meals to make for after Charlie. I liked the look of it enough to add it to my list of “things to make for when baby comes”. Of course, before I even stepped foot in the kitchen to make it, I took my pen and made a bunch of changes to it. (I guess I view cooking as an art. My meals and recipes are like my canvas, and I am the artist creating a work of art.) As I’m sure I’ve told you many times, I just love to cook, but especially love CREATING new, wonderful recipes in my kitchen. This Turkey Taco Chili is so so yummy! I just love the flavors of the ground turkey, beans, corn, and tomatoes in every bite.

It’s super heathy, seriously easy to whip together, and even freezer friendly. Simmer on the stove for a short time, serve it up, load with toppings and DIG IN! This is such a great recipe to add to you winter meals this season.

Turkey Taco Chili

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey
3 large onions, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15 ounce) can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, and juices
1 (4 ounce) cans diced, mild green chilies
1 1/2 cups frozen yellow corn
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
3/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoons tomato paste
5 cups low-sodium chicken broth
Salt and pepper

To Double:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 pounds ground turkey
6 large onions, diced
12 cloves garlic, minced
2 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 (15 ounce) cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained
4 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, and juices
2 (4 ounce) cans diced, mild green chilies
3 cups frozen yellow corn
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
4 tablespoons tomato paste
10 cups (2 1/2 quarts) low-sodium chicken broth
Salt and pepper

Instructions

In a large dutch oven or stock pot, heat oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add turkey and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon while cooking.
When turkey is cooked, stir in onions and garlic, and cook until slightly softened, for about 5 minutes. Then add beans, tomatoes, green chilies, corn, spices, tomato paste, chicken broth, salt and pepper to taste, and stir. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 15-20 minutes. Season with additional salt and pepper if needed.
Serve chili garnished with sour cream, shredded cheddar or colby-jack cheese, and sliced scallions on top, and a side of tortilla chips.

http://elizabethshome.com/turkey-taco-chili/

If you’re looking for another great ground turkey soup recipe, you’ll have to try my Turkey Stuffed Pepper Soup.

My husband found an idea for these about two years ago on Pinterest and had been asking me to make them. While red enchiladas are not my favorite thing to eat, I was very curious about white ones. For Valentine’s Day 2012, I surprised him with these very very yummy white chicken enchiladas. They were delicious! Of course, I took the original recipe, and gave it a little make-over. Because, well, that’s what I love to do 😉

Incase you’re wondering, “So, how are these better than the Pinterest ones?” Here’s how:

My biggest addition was adding an onion! Yes, it is sooo needed in these.
Next, I added a bit more cheese on top, as well as inside the tortillas.
I also added a little bit of pepper jack cheese to give them an extra kick.
My favorite little sneaky swap was using reduced-fat sour cream instead of regular.
I also opted for low-sodium chicken broth.

So, a few health-conscious substitutions, a bit more cheesy goodness, and a little more punch. What’s not to love?!

I just made these again tonight for our little Saturday date-night at home, and let’s just say they were a very well-deserved treat after a busy day. We served them with a great fresh salsa that Andrew picked up from Costco, called Jack’s Special Medium Salsa by Garden Fresh Gourmet. We really enjoyed this salsa and thought it paired well with these enchiladas.

Go grab your favorite salsa, and give these White Chicken Enchiladas a try! And let me know what you think 🙂

White Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients

1 small onion, diced
3 1/2 tablespoons butter
10 soft taco shells (flour)
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken*
3 cups shredded monterey jack cheese
1/2 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1 (4 oz) can diced green chillies, drained

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9×13 pan with cooking spray.
In a medium sauce pan, melt 1/2 tablespoon butter, then add the onion and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook until softened but not browned, 3 or 4 minutes. Transfer onion to a medium sized mixing bowl, and set aside.
Rinse and dry sauce pan, and return to stove. Then melt the remaining 3 tablespoons butter, and whisk in flour and cook for about 1 minute. Gradually add the broth and whisk until smooth. Warm over medium heat until thick and bubbly. Remove from heat and stir in sour cream and chilies. Season with salt and pepper. (Do not boil.)
Add the chicken, 1 1/2 cups monterey jack cheese, and pepper jack to the mixing bowl with the onions and stir together. Add salt and pepper to taste. Place a scoop (about 1/10th) of the filling in each tortilla, roll up tightly and place seem-side down in pan.
Pour sauce over enchiladas and top with remaining cheese.
Bake for 22 minutes and then broil for 3 minutes to brown the cheese. Serve with salsa or picante sauce on the side.

Notes

*The best way to cook the chicken is in a large nonstick skillet, coated with cooking spray, or about 1-2 teaspoons oil. Season chicken with salt and pepper, and cook until chicken is cooked through, and no longer pink, about 7 minutes per side. Then transfer to a clean plate and let cool. When cool enough to handle, pull chicken apart by hand, and shred.

http://elizabethshome.com/white-chicken-enchiladas/