Chili Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Fall fanatic, chili fanatic... 

...but I have definitely taken it to a new level with this one.  

I didn't know I was going to be posting this chili recipe, as I kind of worked in the moment and didn't document the actual "making of the chili"... normal fall Sunday, family is in, running around so we decided to put some chili in the crock to have it ready around 4 so everyone could eat at their own leisure.  

The night before, we were at our favorite Mexican restaurant, Casa Mama, and of course I had to consider one of my favorite Mexican dishes, the Chile Relleno.  They use poblano peppers for chile rellenos and even though I decided on a tilapia dish, I could not get the poblano out of my mind!  Knowing I was making chili in the a.m., I had an idea to work one of my favorite peppers into my chili! 

I am going to loosely describe what I did for the chili because it did turn out to be ridiculously good.  I already posted a chili recipe on my blog in the past, but this one is a bit different from that one.  I subbed ground turkey for ground beef, added turkey sausage, seasoned the ground turkey with DIY taco seasoning, and added a bottle of lite beer to the mix!  

(Recipe might appear a little overwhelming, long ingredient list, but once you get everything in the crock pot there isn't much to do after that...IT IS VERY doable- I only do doable.)

Chili

1 lb ground turkey

1 lb ground turkey sausage

DIY taco seasoning 
(1 tbsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp oregano, 
and 1/2 tsp onion powder)

5-6 small garlic cloves or 2-3 large ones

2- 15 oz. cans tomato sauce

1- 28 oz. diced tomatoes

1- 6 oz. can tomato paste 
(Walmart has a new organic brand, Wild Oats, which is pretty good/reasonably priced!)

2 cans dark red kidney beans (1 can drained, 1 can not drained)

1 can light red kidney beans

1 can black beans

1 green pepper

1 yellow onion

3 stalks of celery

1 bottle of light beer
1 tbsp minced garlic (jarred)

Salt and pepper

Chili powder (Fiesta Brand)

Quick Chili Mix 
(I like Fiesta Brand but any Chili powder and chili seasoning mix will work!)

 

Garlic salt
Seasoned salt

Dried minced onion

Red pepper flakes

Toppings

Sour cream

Shredded cheese

Chopped red onion
Green onions/scallions

Sides

White rice

2 poblano peppers

(or however many you need!) 

Avocado oil

-Start with crock pot on high.-Brown sausage in sauce pan and put in crock pot.
-Brown ground turkey in sauce pan and add DIY taco seasoning with 1/2 cup of water.  Cook until water cooks out and turkey is seasoned through.
-Mince garlic cloves and add to seasoned turkey.  Cook through until garlic is fragrant.
-Add seasoned turkey to crock pot with sausage and mix.
-Add can of diced tomatoes and cans of tomato sauce.
-Add tomato paste and mix in well.
-Add 1 can of dark red kidney beans, not drained.
-Add the remaining cans of beans- dark red, light red, and black beans -all drained.
-Mix well.
-Chop whole onion, whole green pepper, and 3 stalks of celery and add to crock pot, mixing well.
-Add bottle of beer slowly, stirring it into the chili as you pour.
-Add 1 tablespoon jarred minced garlic and mix.
-Leave chili to cook in crock pot until heated through before adding your seasonings.  (I prefer food to be hot before I start tasting and adding my seasonings!)
-Add seasonings to taste- salt, pepper, garlic salt, seasoned salt, dried minced onion, chili powder, and quick chili mix.  (Sorry!  This is the sketchy part, as I usually just taste and season, taste and season!)

-Cook on high 3 hours stirring occasionally then set on low for 3 more hours and continue stirring.

              


-Cook white rice while preparing poblanos.

-When chili is done or nearly done, you can start preparing the poblanos.  They take about 30 minutes from start to finish, including being stuffed with rice and chili and then baked.

-Preheat oven to 375.

-Cut stem out of poblano and slice in half lengthwise then flesh out and rinse out all seeds.

-Lay poblanos on cookie sheet with the outside (skin) facing up and brush with avocado oil.

-Bake for 12-15 mins. or until poblanos become flexible to the touch.

-Flip so insides are facing up and brush with avocado oil.
-Cook for 5 more minutes.

  

-Top poblanos with a layer of white rice and then fill with chili.
-Bake another 5 mins.
-Top chili with red pepper flakes to add some spice. (I couldn't make our chili too spicy for the kids, so I added some pepper flakes when I made the poblanos!) 

-Top with shredded cheese and bake another 5 mins. or until cheese is melted and browning.

-Plate the white rice and serve poblano on top of the rice.
-Remove some of the sauce/liquid from the chili to top the poblano. 

-Finally add your choice of toppings!- red onion, sour cream and green onions are some suggestions!

STUFFIT<3LML

Shredded Ranch Chicken BLT Sliders

A twist on the traditional BLT...

While doing my meal planning on a Sunday, I was thinking of making chicken sandwiches for dinner during the week, (something easy!) but I'm not a huge fan of the huge breast of chicken on bread deal...so I knew I wanted to shred the chicken instead.  We love BLTs and eat them every once in a while for lunch during the summer or on the weekends and maybe once in a while for dinner, so I combined the two and then thought a ranch flavoring would go well with the BLT flavoring... From there I created my own super simple recipe that can be quickly whipped up during the week!  The fam LOVED it!  ENJOY!

Shredded Ranch Chicken BLT Sliders

3 chicken breasts

olive oil

salt and pepper

1/2 cup mayo

1/3 cup milk

1 hidden valley buttermilk ranch dressing packet

1 packet of bacon

iceberg lettuce

sliced tomato

American cheese

slider buns

Heat oven to 375.

Drizzle glass pie plate or casserole dish with olive oil.

In order to cook the chicken faster, I usually slice each breast lengthwise so they're thinner.

Place chicken breasts in plate and drizzle the top of chicken with more olive oil.

Season with salt and pepper.

I baked these breasts in the oven for 10 minutes and then flipped them and added salt and pepper to the other side.

I only cooked the other side for about 5 more minutes.

Total cook time for chicken was about 15-20 minutes.

While chicken is baking, start cooking the bacon.

Place chicken aside to cool.

Shred chicken when it has cooled.

Once chicken is shredded, add the ranch packet, 1/2 cup mayo, and 1/3 cup milk.

Mix well!

Spoon slightly warm or cooled shredded chicken mixture onto slider buns and top with bacon, lettuce, tomato and cheese!

BLTaNEWway<3LML.

Stuffed TexMex Zucchini with Quinoa and Brown Rice

Another recipe with zucchini- I just absolutely love this veg!  I saw the idea on Pinterest, just a picture, and from it, created my own recipe.  I used DIY taco seasoning, now for the second time, which is a HUGE change for us as I used to use 2 packets of Old El Paso seasoning each time I made tacos/burritos! YIKES!  Old El Paso contains trans-fats, is highly processed, and contains MSG-like ingredients.  So I feel a bit better using the DIY since I've read it is a ton better for you.  I had all of the seasonings anyways, so it wasn't any extra work!  I cannot even describe how delicious this recipe is!- You obviously just have to try it yourself... and as always, pretty simple!

Mex Stuffed Zucchini 

4-5 zucchini squash

1-1.25 lbs ground turkey

1 cup of water

olive oil

half a green pepper, chopped

half an onion, chopped

a handful of cherry tomatoes, chopped

Garlic salt

1/2 cup shredded taco blend/fiesta blend cheese

extra shredded cheese to top
optional:  taco sauce

Taco seasoning

I followed the DIY taco seasoning pictured below from Pinterest...I did however cut the amount of cumin in half, used 1/2 tsp and increased the onion powder to 1 tsp.  I did not add red pepper flakes or the flour.

Mix together the spices for your taco seasoning and heat oven to 375 degrees.

Brown 1.25 lbs ground turkey...this is the amount I cooked, but I ended up having leftovers!

            

Sprinkle all of the seasoning over turkey.

                       

Add 1/2 cup of water and mix continuously while you are working with the zucchini/veggies.

                         

I used four zucchinis, but again, I did have leftovers so you could use five if you want...

Cut the ends off and half the zucchinis.

Scoop out insides with a spoon to desired thickness, but keep the insides!  All that goodness will not go to waste!

Add zucchini flesh to turkey and mix together, breaking up the flesh with your spoon.  Continue to heat and mix occasionally.

Drizzle hollowed out zucchini halves with olive oil.

              Chop the cherry tomatoes, onion, and green pepper.

            
                                     

Add the chopped veggies to seasoned turkey and zucchini mixture.

Add another 1/2 cup water to turkey and veg mix and...MIX!

My turkey needed a touch more salt, so I added some garlic salt to taste.- optional!

Add 1/2 a cup of cheese when veggies are cooked to your liking.

Mix until cheese is melted into ground turkey/veg mixture.

Spoon mixture into zucchini and bake at 375 for 15 mins.

At the same time you are preparing and baking the zucchini, you can be working on your side dish.

This is what I served the stuffed zucchini with.... I found this quinoa/rice blend at Aldi's and even the picky eaters enjoyed it- Definitely recommend trying this!

                            

Check zucchini for desired tenderness and if ready, top with cheese and bake an additional 5 mins. or until cheese is melted.

Top with taco sauce as an option.

Serve with quinoa/rice or some other side.

Very kid friendly too!

Trying it before I serve it!

                                                      

Leftover meat!

I think the leftovers tasted better than when I first cooked it!Pack the leftover ground turkey mixture with a spinach herb tortilla, cheese, and taco sauce for a healthy lunch!
<3LML.