Beans with Turkey Sausage Chili

This is a quick and easy bean soup recipe.  I like to shop the bulk bins at the grocery store, and so my recipes usually contain dried beans.  If you prefer to purchase canned beans, that's perfectly fine!  You don't have to go through the work of soaking and/or boiling dry beans if you do not want to, or don't have time to.  :)  Canned beans will work just as well.

3 Bean Turkey Chili

Ingredients:

1 pound turkey sausage (your favorite flavor, smoked, spicy, whatever you want to use), cut into thin slices

1 cup dried kidney beans, prepared (soaked/boiled)

1 cup dried black beans, prepared (soaked/boiled)

1 cup great northern beans, prepared (soaked/boiled)

1 - 20 ounce package frozen corn

3 cups salsa

1 green bell pepper, diced

1 chili pepper, diced

1 onion, diced

5 cloves garlic, diced

1/2 tablespoon ground cumin

Instructions:

Prepare dried beans, use over night soak method or boil method.  Drain and rinse well.

Cook sausage if you purchased uncooked.  If you purchased the pre-cooked kind, just slice it up and toss it into the slow cooker.  Another option is to fry up the sausage like a ground meat, and then add into slow cooker.  It just depends on how you prefer your meat. ;) 

Put all ingredients into a 6 quart slow cooker, give it a stir, cover and set to low for 6 hours.

Yep - it's that easy!  Enjoy! :) 

Black Bean, Turkey, & Pumpkin Chili

This is a hearty winter day chili, sure to be a crowd pleaser!

Black Bean, Turkey and Pumpkin chili

Ingredients:

2 pounds ground turkey (or left over turkey, shredded or cubed)
1 medium onion, diced
1 yellow bell pepper
3 cups chicken broth (or turkey stock)
2 cups dried black beans
1 (15 oz) can/jar of pumpkin puree
1 (14 1/2 oz) can/jar diced tomatoes, undrained
3 teaspoons dried parsley
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
2 rounded teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric

Instructions:

Soak black beans over night.  If not softened, do a quick stove top soaking (bring to boil and simmer) until beans are tender.  Drain and rinse beans, set aside. (You can be frying turkey meat while you wait for the beans if you want to.)

In a frying pan brown the ground turkey, add onion and bell pepper and cook another 5-10 minutes (until veggies are soft).  Place in 6 quart slow cooker, add the rest of the ingredients (including the black beans that have been drained and rinsed), cover and set slow cooker to low for 6 hours.

Yield about 10 servings

White Bean & Chicken Chili - Gluten-free

This is a tasty chili that will warm you up on a cold day with out a lot of work, after all, it is a slow cooker meal - right?!  :)

White Bean and Chicken Chili

Ingredients:

3 large chicken breasts (or 5-6 small ones)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 medium onions, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
5 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons ground cumin
9-10 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups dried white beans (I used great northern beans), overnight soak in 10-12 cups water,  stove top cook until beans are tender if needed.
6 cups chicken broth

Toppings:  shredded cheddar cheese, shredded mozzarella cheese, (or my favorite) shredded Dubliner cheese, and/or sour cream.

Instructions:

In a large skillet over medium heat, add a little olive oil (about a tablespoon), and saute chicken until no longer pink.  Add in minced onion, garlic and diced jalapeno.  Cook until veggies are tender.  Pour into 6 quart slow cooker.

Put 2 1/2 cups of the prepared beans into a medium bowl.  Add about 1 cup of the broth and mash beans.  Add to slow cooker.  Add all remaining ingredients (except toppings, of course) to the slow cooker, give it a stir and cover, set on low for 4 hours (or longer, after 4 hours you can set to keep warm and leave it the rest of the day if you want to).

Stir slow cooker contents before serving, add toppings of choice to each bowl of chili, and Enjoy!