Chicken Chili

A couple weeks ago at the farmers market, I bought a couple pounds of fresh navy beans.  Something that I discovered being a member of a CSA, was that fresh "dried" beans are so much better than beans from the grocery store!!!!  You don't even have to soak them.  I even talked mom into buying some.  Since I went to Sam's Club the other day, I had purchased a rotisserie chicken ($4.99 for a very large bird!).  So, this morning, I decided to make white chicken chili.  Of course, it helps if you check to make sure you have all the ingredients!  But when I looked in my cupboard, I didn't have green chiles.  So, I looked in my pantry and found a jar of medium hot Hungarian peppers (also from my CSA).  I've actually had them set aside because I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with them.  I figured they would be a good substitute.  Well, it only took an hour of simmering for the beans to cook and the peppers were better than green chiles!

White Chicken Chili

• 1 lb fresh "dried" navy beans*
• 6 cups chicken stock
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium sweet onion*
• 4 medium hot Hungarian peppers**
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• 3 cups shredded chicken breast
• 1 1/2 Tbsp ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp dried oregano
• Salt & Pepper, to taste

 Rinse the beans and sort.  Place in a large Dutch oven and add chicken stock.  Bring to a boil; then reduce heat to a simmer.  Cover and cook.  While beans are cooking, chop onions and peppers.  Heat olive oil in large skillet; add onions and saute until they become translucent.  Add the peppers, garlic and chickens and heat through.  Add these to the soup.  Add seasonings.  Bring to a boil; cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, or until beans are cooked.  Add water as necessary.

*Farmers market ingredients
**CSA ingredients 

White Chicken Chili

It must be winter. I was trying to decide what to make for lunch. Looking at my fridge, I realized I still had a lot of chicken leftover. Since the Cowboys/ Green Bay game was on early this afternoon, I decided something football appropriate would be good. I've never made white chicken chili before, but I thought it sounded good. Of course, I only had 2 cans of Cannellini beans, so I had to use pintos for the third, but I threw everything in the Crockpot and crossed my fingers. Of course, my corn craving was still hanging around, so after polling on FB, I added that. Then I couldn't get the seasoning right. So, back to FB and in the end, I finally got it worked out. I really like this stuff and now I know how to make it.

 White Chicken Chili

•  1 medium onion, diced
•  3 cloves garlic, minced
•  1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cans Cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
•  1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
•  4 caps shredded chicken
•  2 (4-oz) cans green chilies
•  2 Tbsp ground cumin
•  1 tsp oregano
•  1/4 tsp cayenne
•  2 tsp smoked paprika
•  salt & pepper, to taste
• Sharp cheddar, for garnish

Heat olive oil in large skillet.  Cook onions and garlic until onion is translucent.  Add to Crockpot.  Add remaining ingredients, except cheese.   Cover and cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours. Adjust seasoning.  Serve topped with cheddar, if desired.