Butternut Chili & TFRecipes.com Menu Mailer

Last night it got a bit chilly in our house....it was down in the 40's overnight with our windows open. For those who don't live in Central FL....this is what we call "chilly". I wanted to make some chili for dinner tonight to warm us up.

I remembered reading a yummy recipe in my recent Traditional Food Menu Mailer. Kerry Ann is now offering all the favorite recipes from Volume 1 of her Menu Mailer in a NEW BOOK! Check it out.

We used the recipe below...of course with some of my own changes.

I am doing a fast from red meat this week so I made this vegetarian. So...first no beef, no liver and no beef broth (subbed water). Second I used canned (lazy) beans...1 Kidney and 1 Black. I always add more spices on top of what is listed...I doubled the cumin & chili powder then added in oregano, cinnamon & a little cocoa powder. I served it over sweet cornbread with sides of shredded cheddar cheese & sour cream.

Families Verdict: I LOVED it. I may add more spices next time...I like things HOT. My DH liked it and wouldn't mind it again. The others kids..can take it or leave it....they enjoy the cornbread, butter & sour cream more than the beans/veggies.

Beef and Butternut Chili

Hands-on: 20 minutes
Hands-off: 15 / 15 minutes
Serves 4

1/3 pound dry small red or kidney beans or 1 can, drained
3 Tbs coconut oil, tallow, butter or ghee
½ - 1 pound ground beef of stew meat
2-4 ounces ground beef liver, optional
1-2 onions, diced
2 garlic cloves, pressed
2 (14½-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
1 Anaheim chili, chopped or 1 (4-ounce) can green chilies
½ butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1 cup beef stock
½ Tbs cumin
½ Tbs chili powder (adjust to your preference)
1 tsp salt
Dash pepper
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed, optional

In a crock-pot, cover the beans with water and place on ‘keep warm’
overnight with the lid off. The next morning, drain and rinse then recover
with water. Cover and cook until tender. Drain and set aside.
In a Dutch oven or soup pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Cook
the beef, liver and onion while breaking up the beef until it is no longer
pink. Stir in the reserved beans, garlic, tomatoes, green chilies, squash,
stock and spices and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat and simmer
for 15 minutes. Stir in the corn and cook another 15 minutes or until the
squash is tender and the chili is thickened.

Serve with cornbread. Stretch this meal by using a half-pound of meat,
add extra beans, use a large butternut squash and add an extra can of
tomatoes.

Chicken Taco Soup

This is a great easy meal to make with leftover chicken.

Ingredients

* 1 onion (small), diced
* 1 can pinto beans
* 1 can kidney beans
* 1 can black beans
* 1 can corn (or equiv. frozen corn)
* 1 bottle of beer
* 2 cups stock (chicken or beef)
* 1- 32oz can Fire Roasted tomatoes, diced
* 3 tbs Fajita seasoning (or taco seasoning)
* 2-3 chicken breasts(frozen bagged) or 3 cups leftover diced chicken

Put canned stuffs in cooker, mix with seasoning, place chicken on top covered by liquid, cook 4 hours on low, take out chicken to cool to cut up, add back in for 2 hours then serve with sour cream, cheddar cheese and serve over sweet cornbread.

If using leftover chicken, start after you cut up the chicken...mix everything together.......only takes 2 hours.

This is easily doubled, tripled and freezes great.

Thanks & Meal Plan - Jan 1-20th

Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers. Our new baby, Abigail, is doing wonderfully and completely healed from her pneumonia. We are just now trying to get our life back to normal after this crazy holiday season, birth and hospitalization.

I made a new meal plan for January. It feels good to get back in tot he swing of things. Many meals are still from the freezer but I am enjoying doing some cooking from scratch too since my recovery is going well. I am still keeping meals fairly simple and I was able to do a plan from Jan 1st thru the 20th. I am hoping to get the rest of the month done in a few days.


Thursday - Jan 1st
B- Cinnamon Rolls, Citrus Salad, Eggs & Bacon
L- (late breakfast)
D- Ham & Northern Bean Soup, 5 Min Bread
DD- Banana Fritters

Friday – Jan 2nd
B- Caramel Apple Rice Pudding, (leftover cinnamon rolls) and Citrus Salad
L- Leftovers
D- Baked Ziti Florentine w/sausage & Breadsticks
DD- Brownies

Saturday – Jan 3rd
B- Cereal & Citrus Salad
L- Zucchini Beef Bake
D- Church
DD- Ice Cream

Sunday – Jan 4th
B- Blueberry French Toast Casserole
L- Egg Salad Sandwiches & fresh veggie/Dip
D- Crockpot Beef & Butternut Chili (Menu Mailer www.cookingtf.com) & Sweet Cornbread
DD- Chocolate Chickpea Cake (Menu Mailer www.cookingtf.com)

Monday – Jan 5th
B- Veggie Loaded Quiche, Muffins & Broiled Grapefruit
L- Leftover
D- Smoothered Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Gravy, Sautéed Kale & Rolls
DD- Chocolate Banana Pudding

Tuesday – Jan 6th
B- Waffles, Bacon & Tangerines
L- Roasted Veggie Wrap
D- BBQ Chicken Sandwiches, apple coleslaw, sweet potato coins
DD- Brownies

Wednesday – Jan 7th
B- Baked Oatmeal
L- Mac-N-Cheese, Carrots & Dip
D- Grill Night – Burger, Portabellas, hot dogs, potato salad, baked beans, sauerkraut
DD- Ice Cream Sandwiches

Thursday/Friday – Jan 8th & 9th
Out of Town

Saturday – Jan 10th
B- Peach Oatmeal Pudding & Sausage
L- Roasted Veggie Sausage Pizza
D- Chicken Sukuyaki (Menu Mailer www.cookingtf.com) over Brown rice
DD- Apricot Oat Bars

Sunday – Jan 11th
B- Breakfast Casserole
L- Waldorf Chicken Salad, Apple Sauerkraut, & pickles
D- Sushi Spring Rolls
DD- Banana Fritters

Monday – Jan 12th
B- French Toast, Bacon, caramelized pears
L- Fennel, Pecan, Watercress Salad w/OJ Vinaigrette
D- BBQ Turkey Meatballs, Quinoa, Steamed Broccoli, Sauerkraut (Menu Mailer www.cookingtf.com)

Tuesday – Jan 13th
B- Caramel Apple Rice Pudding and Citrus Salad
L- Sandwiches
D- Crockpot Chicken Taco Soup & Sweet Cornbread
DD- Lactation Oatmeal cookies

Wednesday – Jan 14th
B- Veggie loaded Quiche, Muffins, Grapefruit
L- 7 Layer Mexican Dip & Chips
D- Church

Thursday – Jan 15th
B- Puffed Pear Cranberry Pancake, Chicken Apple Breakfast Sausage
L- Leftovers
D- Crockpot Honey Ribs, Shoestring fries, baked beans, & corn
DD- Chocolate Chip Cookies

Friday – Jan 16th
B- Banana Blueberry Oatmeal Pudding
L- Mushroom, Blackbean & Cheese Quesadillas
D- Smothered Steak, (Menu Mailer www.cookingtf.com) egg noodles & asparagus

Saturday – Jan 17th
B- Dippy Eggs, toast, bacon
L- Pear Gorgonzola Salad
D- Teriyaki Salmon Patties, Rstd Butternut squash, Blackbean/mango salsa

Sunday – Jan 18th
B- Cheese Dreams, Citrus Fruit Salad
L- Leftovers
D- Ginger Pot Stickers & Wonton Soup
DD- Pear Caramel Cheesecake

Monday – Jan 19th
B- Baked Oatmeal
L- Egg Salad. Lettuce, tomato, raw cheese, ginger carrots
D- Tacos
DD- Leftovers

Tuesday – Jan 20th
B- Banana/Blueberry Pancakes, scrambled eggs & Bacon
L- Roasted Veggie Pizza
D- Apricot Glazed Meatloaf, Sweet Potato Coins, spinach casserole, pumpkin bread
DD- Brownies