Friday, January 8, 2010

A Few Quick Tips & Winter Weather Turkey Chili

An "arctic" front has pushed through the area, so needless to say it is cold...cold outside! I ran some errands this morning and found out something interesting that some of you may already know about...but it's news to me. I don't normally shop Starbucks but this morning it seemed fitting to pick up something warm to drink. While in this particular location I noticed a barrel that had semi large bags of what I thought was coffee sitting there. Thinking to myself that these were awfully large bags compared to the normal ones I have seen sold, I glanced to take a peek. To my surprise it wasn't coffee at all. Well...it was sort of...it was used coffee grounds. Best of all they were free! I asked the sales lady about them and she said to take as many as I wanted. Well, not wanting to be a hog, I took two. But now that I know they do this often, I will certainly be back for more as need be.

So what on earth an I going to do with the used grounds??? Put them in our compost bin of course. So keep yours eyes open at your local coffee chain (Starbucks, Seattle's Best or whatever you have close to you) for garden grounds. This is one great way to help boost your compost pile.

Now, while at the market this morning, I had planned to buy more ground turkey meat as we were getting low. Unfortunately I only saw one store brand package in the meat cooler. So I asked the meat manager that was there if they had more in the back. He informs me that due to the weather the store trucks in the North are not able to get out so our local warehouse that supplies the stores are not able to get inventory. With the weather being so unpredictable, they were not sure when they would get another delivery in. I fully understood the situation but was a little disappointed thinking that I might have to try another market on the way home but then...the manager asked me how many packages I was in need of. I told him and he offered to let me have the Jennie-O brand ground turkey meat for a discount if I wanted.

Well, since the normal price of that brand is $5.99 (and it was on sale) I jumped at the offer. So he took a few packages to the back and marked them down for me. I only paid $2.99 for my meat!! That's a $3.00 savings per package, not to mention $1.00 cheaper than the store brand that I was going to get in the first place. So it doesn't hurt to ask if you don't see something you need out on the shelf. You never know what might happen if you do.

So with meat in hand and cold winds blowing, why not make a steamy pot of chili. Won't you join us for dinner tonight....

Winter Weather Turkey Chili
1 lb. lean ground turkey
1/2 a large onion; diced
1 Tblsp. minced garlic
2 pints turkey stock
1 (15-oz) can black beans; drained & rinsed
1 (15-oz) can whole kernel corn; drained
1 (15-oz) can tomato sauce
1 (12-oz) can diced tomatoes & green chilies
1 Tblsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
pinch of kosher salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
olive oil

In a preheated medium skillet, cook meat until no longer pink. Set aside.

In a heavy stock pot, heat 1-2 Tblsp. olive oil. Add chopped onions and saute until almost translucent. Shortly before onions are clear, add in garlic. Saute.

Add cooked ground meat, beans and corn. Combine to mix well.

Stir in spices and stock. Add in tomatoes and sauce. Stir well.

Cover and let simmer for about 30 minutes before serving.

Click HERE for printable recipe

**for a slightly different version of my turkey chili click here

4 comments:

Cranky G. said...

Oh, yummy chili! And what a great deal on your turkey! I can vouch for the fact that the trucks can't get going! Hubby is an owner/operator and hauls a lot of meat. He's been driving for nearly 30 years and has never been grounded like he was yesterday! He had stopped at home, had a sandwich, showered, and was ready to roll, but couldn't move! The snow had drifted so high that he was grounded til this morning!

Talk about a caged animal! Whew! I don't know who was happier to see him get moving! HA HA!

Keeper of the Home said...

Cranky,
Wow! This weather is certainly a pain at times.

~Mrs. M

Domestic Goddess said...

My hubby is a contractor and as you've seen with the economy, work is slow and money is tight. So yesterday Hubby couldn't work because the weather was so cold, but he's out today! He just called me to let me know he was going to work as long as the sun kept it above freezing. I thank God everyday that I have a Hubby who will do everything he can to support his family, including building outside in the freezing cold.

Phyllis Blickensderfer said...

Excellent recipe!!! Kudos for making the cold weather turn into a great shopping trip.