Hearty Chicken Chili

Chili is one of my all time favorite winter meals! Its hearty and filling and you can put as much cheese on it as you want and it just tastes better and better! Whenever I make chili, I make a huge pot of it, eat some of it then and then freeze it in individual servings so I can just whip one out whenever its cold and I’m hungry!

This hearty chili is a great idea for night in with a big glass on wine and a great movie. It is packed full of veggies and fabulous spices and it just downright comforting. This week Maria from Two Peas and Their Pod and I want to share 2 of our favorite recipes for hearty and healthy soup/chili! They are both tried and true and utterly delicious! Check out Maria’s Slow Roasted Tomato and Roasted Red Pepper Soup.

Ingredients

• 2 onions, chopped
• 6 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• olive oil for drizzling
• 2 cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained (you can use any kind of beans if you don’t have kidney beans)
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 cans crushed tomatoes
• 1 cup chicken or turkey stock
• 3 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tbsp dried hot red pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 cups of shredded chicken (great use for leftover chicken breasts or if you roasted a whole chicken you can use that too!)

1. In a large pot drizzle the bottom with olive oil and cook the onions and red peppers over medium high heat for 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin and red pepper flakes and mix together.
2. Add the tomato paste, tomatoes, stock, beans, oregano and chicken. Salt and pepper. Simmer this mixture for about an hour. (add more stock if needed)
3. Serve with any of the following, avocado, cheese, red onions, sour cream, more cheese, scallions, did I mention you can add cheese?

*Note* I tried not to look like a total cheese maniac when taking this picture so I only used a bit – once I was ready to eat the chili I added about another handful of grated jack cheese. yum yum yum.

Check out Maria’s soup too!!

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Tags: Cheese, Chicken Chili, Chili, Hearty Chili, Warm Soup