{Tasty} Turkey Chili

This recipe feeds an army, or a family that eats like one....gotta love feeding boys! We have this meal at LEAST once every two weeks and sometimes once every week, we'll never be tired of it AND it's easy to throw together!

2lb. 8oz. ground turkey
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 onion, chopped
10 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 c. flour
2 Tbsp chili powder
2 Tbsp tomato bouillon with chicken flavor (found on the Mexican food isle)
1 tsp. sea salt
1-15 oz. can low-sodium fat-free chicken broth
2-15 oz. cans diced tomatoes
2-15 oz. cans white kidney beans (a.k.a.: canellini beans) drained and rinsed

In a large nonstick skillet cook the turkey until done. Drain any extra fat and rinse in hot water. Add turkey to a large pot and add the oil, onion, and garlic. Cook until onion in soft and translucent; juices will remain in the bottom of the pot.

Meanwhile mix the flour, chili powder, bouillon and salt. Once the turkey/onion mix is cooked add the flour mix and stir until well combined, cook for about 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Add broth, tomatoes and kidney beans to skillet and simmer 15-20 minutes or until thickened to desired consistency.

Black-Bean Lasagna

When we tried this recipe for the first time I made a few changes that didn't affect the nutrition information (canned chopped tomatoes v. fresh chopped) and one change that did, instead of using full fat Monterey Jack cheese I used reduced fat. So, for nutrition information I have left the recipe with the full fat, but I will continue with he reduced fat myself☺

2 Tbsp. chopped fire-roasted Jalapeῆo peppers (La Victoria)
2 c. chopped onion
1 c. chopped green bell pepper
1 c. chopped red bell pepper
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 c. fire-roasted diced tomatoes (Hunts or Muir Glen)
1½ tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander
2 (15.5 oz.) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
1 (8 oz.) carton light sour cream
1 large egg, lightly beaten
16 oz. chunky salsa
Cooking spray
12 cooked lasagna noodles
6 oz. shredded Monterey Jack cheese (see note above)

Preheat oven to 375°.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell peppers, and garlic; sauté 6 minutes. Add tomato, cumin, and coriander; cook 3 minutes. Add jalapeῆo and beans, and cook 3 minutes. Remove from heat; cool 10 minutes. Stir in cilantro, sour cream, and egg.

Spread 3 tablespoons salsa in bottom of a 13x9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 4 noodles slightly overlapping over salsa, and top with half of bean mixture. Cover and bake at 375° for 30 minutes. Uncover and add the remaining cheese and bake an additional 15 minutes or until cheese melts. Let stand 5 minutes. Yield: 8 servings.

CALORIES: 452 (25% from fat); FAT: 12.6g (sat: 6.7g, mono: 3.4g, poly: 1.3g); PROTEIN: 21.8g; CARB: 65.2; FIBER: 7.5g; CHOL: 55mg; IRON: 5.4; SODIUM: 559mg; CALC: 262mg

White Bean & Spinach Ravioli

I like to add a little Italian 3 cheese blend to give the filling a little more depth.

Recipe adapted from The Eat-Clean Diet for Family & Kids

1/2 c. chopped spinach
1 c. cannellini (white kidney) beans
1 c. reduced-fat ricotta cheese
1/4 c. mozzarella
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
32 won ton wrappers, egg roll wrappers cut into fourths or homemade pasta dough
2 c. prepared spaghetti sauce

Process spinach, beans cheeses and salt in a food processor until smooth. Place half of wrappers out and top with 1 Tablespoon of bean mixture. Moisten the edges and place remaining wrappers on top of the filling. Seal one edge at a time making sure to get any air out until all edges are sealed. Gently place ravioli in boiling water and cook for approximately two minutes. The ravioli is ready when you can see the green of the filling through the wrappers. While pasta cooks warm the spaghetti sauce.

1 serving is 4 ravioli with 1/4 c. sauce.

Nutrition info: Calories: 343, Total Fats: 3g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 17mg, Sodium: 590mg, Total Carbohydrates: 60g, Dietary Fiber: 6g, Sugars: 4g, Protein: 18g, Iron: 3mg

Corn, Rice and Black Bean Salad

This is a great salad to have around for a quick lunch. If I don't have fresh corn on hand I substitute frozen, the hot rice thaws the corn and the salad cools quickly.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light

1 c. water
1/2 c. long-grain rice
4-5 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice (no substitutions!)
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 lg. clove garlic run through a press
1 1/2 c. rinsed and drained canned black beans
1 1/2 c. fresh corn kernel (about 2 ears)
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Combine the water and rice in a sauce pan with a lid; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork.

Combine juice, oil, pepper and garlic in a large bowl. Add rice and beans; toss to coat. Let stand 15 minutes or until completely cool. Stir in corn and cilantro.

Refried Beans

Once you make homemade refried beans you will never buy another can again!!!

1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/2 c. onion, cut into chunks
5 c. (1 full recipe) Pot Beans with their liquid
grated cheese

In a large frying pan over medium heat, warm oil. Add the onion and saute until soft, about 2 minutes. Discard the onion. Add half of the beans with their liquid and, using a potato masher, mash them until they form a coarse puree. Gradually add the remaining beans and liquid and continue mashing until all the beans are coarsely pureed.

Turn the heat up to medium-high heat and cook, stirring until the puree begins to dry out.

Transfer to a warmed platter and sprinkle with the shredded cheese, if desired. Serve immediately.

Pot Beans

Mexican night is always fun at our house, we serve Pot Beans with rice and homemade flour tortillas. When my husband and I were first married we were on a fixed budget and couldn't go out to eat a lot, that's when I decided to learn to cook! My husband LOVES Mexican food and I couldn't live without Asian cuisine so that's where I started and I've slowly grown my recipe collection in these two areas. My brother served his mission in Honduras and he said that these beans remind him of his mission. Note that there is a lot of prep time because you have to soak the beans, but the overall recipe is very easy. You can take it another step and make refried beans...yummy!

2 c. dried black, pinto or pink beans (we usually have pinto on hand)
2 1/2 quarts water (10 c.)
3 Tbsp. lard or bacon drippings (okay, who has lard on hand? I just save the drippings from our breakfast bacon)
1 fresh cilantro sprig (I have also used dried cilantro...just sprinkled a little in)
2 tsp. salt
3 Serrano chili peppers (very similar to jalapeno peppers)

Pick over and discard any damaged beans or stones. Rinse the beans under cold running water and place in a bowl. Add water to cover by 2 inches and let soak for at least 3 hours or up to 8 hours.

Discard any beans that are floating, then drain the beans and place in a large, heavy pot. Add the 2 1/2 quarts water, onion and lard or drippings and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to medium and boil until the beans are tender, 1 1/2-2 hours. Make sure the beans are always well covered with water, adding more hot water as needed.

When the beans are tender, add the cilantro, salt and chilies. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes longer. Discard the herb sprig and chilies. Adjust the seasoning, then serve with rice and homemade flour tortillas, or make into refried beans.

Black Bean & Corn Soup

Yes, I lied I don't have the nutrition information for this one yet, but I KNOW it's good for you!

This is a great recipe if you don't want a lot of hands on time, almost everything is from a can!

2-15 oz. cans black beans, drained & rinsed
1-14.5 oz. can Mexican stewed tomatoes, undrained
1-14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1-15.25 oz. can whole kernel corn, drained
1-15.25 oz. can chicken broth
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried minced garlic
Favorite toppings (our favorites include: low-fat cheddar, broken up tortilla chips, low-fat sour cream, guacamole and salsa)

Combine all ingredients except toppings and cook in a slow cooker on high 3-4 hours. Serve with your favorite toppings.