White Chicken Chili

1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized strips *
1 cup dried Great Northern beans, sorted and rinsed
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1 garlic clove, minced
2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 10.75-ounce can cream of chicken soup
5 cups water

Just Before Serving:
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)
1 4.5-ounce can chopped green chiles

Toppings:
grated Monterey Jack cheese
sour cream
chopped avocado
additional hot pepper sauce

*Do not substitute chicken breast. The long cooking time will dry it out.

1. In a 3.5- or 4-quart slow cooker, combine all ingredients up to the water. Mix well.
2. Cover and cook on low for 9-10 hours.
3. Just before serving, stir in cumin, hot pepper sauce, and chiles.
4. Serve with desired toppings.

Tip: You can assemble this the night before, minus the water. In the morning, put in the slow cooker, add 5 cups warm water, and stir well. Note that it's usually not safe to refrigerate before slow cooking because it slows the cooking time too much, but in this case the warm water brings the temperature up.

Turkey Pumpkin Chili

This mild chili has a unique flavor. It's fun letting people guess the secret ingredients. Some people can pick out the beer, but no one I've served this to has suspected the pumpkin!


2 pounds ground turkey (or 1 pound turkey, 1 pound ground beef)
1 15.25-ounce can sweet whole kernel corn
1 4-ounce can green chiles
1 14.5-ounce can whole or diced tomatoes
1 29-ounce can tomato sauce
1 15-ounce can pureed pumpkin (or about 2 cups fresh)
1 15-ounce can hominy
1 cup chopped onion
1 12-ounce can beer
1 12-ounce can water
3 Tablespooons minced garlic (about 5 medium cloves, pressed)
2 Tablespoons cumin
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1-1/2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1. Brown the meat with the onions and garlic.
2. Mix all ingredients in a slow cooker.
3. Cook 4-6 hours on low. Serve with cheddar cheese.

Cookbook Review/Recommendation!

I've got loads of cookbooks -- I read them like other people read novels -- and they've all got their own personalities. Many of them stay on my shelf because of one or two favorite recipes. I'll admit that some haven't been off the shelf in a while! Occasionally I find one that I keep right on the counter for whenever there's an opportunity to use it. My newest one is that "I-can't-wait-to-try-another-recipe" kind, and I recommend it if you enjoy baking cookies.

Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cookies by Alice Medrich is filled with delicious recipes, all with precise, easy to follow instructions. Plus, there is valuable information at the front and back of the book regarding technique, ingredients, and helpful tips. Alice is the "real deal" when it comes to baking -- she has credientials and experience to back that up. I attended her class at Central Market in December, and was fascinated by all I learned. I've been baking for over 40 years myself, and still picked up some great tips--like why some cookies bake better on foil while others are best on parchment paper. Who knew there was science in that?

She makes some of her cookies with melted (rather than softened) butter; much easier! Her coconut meringues are incredibly beautiful and tasty too. Peanut butter meringues? Yum. There are a bunch of gluten-free recipes and other special types. It's all arranged by texture, which is an interesting way to organize recipes.

This book is a great gift for the cookie-baker in your family or for yourself. You can't have mine -- it's autographed to me! :)

Wonderful Zucchini-Carrot Bread

I've been trying a lot of new recipes this year, but this is an old favorite I keep going back to. It started out as a Paula Deen recipe but I've added a couple of my own touches to it. Give it a try -- if you didn't put them in yourself, you would never know there were vegetables in this! Definitely not a diet recipe, but so good. I'd call it kid-friendly, except my own kids won't touch it...they heard me call it zucchini bread and that was the end of that. Maybe someday...

The original recipe makes two large loaves. I often just want to make one, so I've included the half-recipe amounts in parentheses for convenience. [The best thing to do, really, is make two loaves and give one away...the recipient will be delighted!]

If I have it, I'll substitute whole wheat pastry flour for half of the flour used. It's best with all the "optional" items but if you don't have them, or don't like them, it's fine to leave them out.

3 1/4 C all-purpose flour (1 5/8 C)
1 1/2 t salt (3/4 t)
1 t ground nutmeg (1/2 t)
2 t baking soda (1 t)
1 t ground cinnamon (1/2 t)
3 C granulated sugar (1 1/2 C)
1/2 C wheat germ (1/4 C) -- optional
1 C vegetable oil (1/2 C)
4 eggs, beaten (2)
1/3 C water (scant 1/4 C)
2 C grated zucchini (1 C)
1 1/2 C grated carrots (3/4 C) -- optional
1 t lemon juice (1/2 t)
1 C chopped walnuts or pecans (1/2 C) -- optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, nutmeg, baking soda, cinnamon, sugar and wheat germ.

In a separate bowl, combine oil, eggs, water, zucchini, carrots and lemon juice.

Mix wet ingredients into dry--by hand is fine--then add nuts and stir in.

Bake in two (one for half recipe) standard loaf pans, sprayed with nonstick spray and the bottoms lined with parchment. Bake one hour or until a tester comes out clean. Can also be baked in 5 mini loaf pans for about 45 minutes.