Versitlity

The battle continues!  I'm still throwing away food.  Granted, not nearly as much, but I can't seem to find the perfect balance.  No matter how much I plan, sometimes the week gets away from me.  Between travel, impromptu dinners out and sometimes a lack of interest as to what's in the fridge, there is still food ending up in the garbage disposal or trash.  One of my biggest problems is the amount of food I'm making.  It's hard cooking for one.  I'm working on trying to decrease the quantity of food I'm creating.  Just a few weeks ago ground turkey was on sale for 1.99 per package.  Great deal!  I bought two.  I made a delicious taco meat and veggie mixture that I could use for breakfast, lunch and dinners.  Egg beater omelets with taco meat for breakfast, taco salad lunches, and taco's for dinner...using my resources well.  Versatile dishes that span the day and week offer variety for the soul!  One of my favorite new recipes (thanks to my boyfriend, Kevin) is Chicken Chili.  It's the best I've ever tasted, and a recipe I can reduce for just me.  I even made it for everyone on my most recent vacation to Sundance, UT.  There were 5 of us in a cabin and we enjoyed the chili for 2 meals!  The chicken chili would also make beautiful enchiladas, taco meat mixture or an exotic casserole for later in the week.  Or, turn it into an outstanding chicken tortilla soup by just adding more broth and tortilla strips.  I hope you find as much joy in this recipe as I do.

Chicken Chili

6 Chicken Breasts
64 oz. Chicken Broth (reduced sodium...you want to control the salt!)
1 Large Vadalia Onion - diced
3 cloves Garlic - crushed
2 Poblano Peppers - small dice
21 oz. Diced Green Chili's
3 large jalapenos (add 1 to 2 more if you like your chili with a kick) - finely dices
1 can Navy beans - drained and rinsed
30 oz. White Hominy - drained and rinsed
1 Knorr Roasted Chicken Gravy package
1 Tbs. Cumin (add more if you like the smoky taste)
1 Tbs. Oregano
1 tsp. basil
1/4 cup chopped Cilantro
Salt and Pepper to taste.

Bring the 64 oz. of Chicken broth to a boil.  Add the chicken breasts and diced onion.  Cook chicken for 15 to 20 minutes or until cooked through.  When the chicken is cooked though, take them out and place on cutting board.  Shred chicken breasts using a fork to pull chicken apart.  Whisk Knorr Roasted Chicken Gravy mixture into chicken broth to remove lumps.  Place chicken back in broth.  Add garlic, poblano peppers, diced green chili's, jalapenos, navy beans, hominy, and spices, except cilantro.  Simmer chili for 30 minutes.  Add chopped cilantro.  Serve with diced tomatoes and sour cream.  (I prefer using plain fat free Greek yogurt instead of sour cream)  To make into enchiladas, decrease the liquid slightly.  After rolling into tortillas, top the enchiladas with green enchilada sauce.  To make soup, increase the liquid amount and added tortilla strips for a delicious chicken tortilla soup.