Amidst all the coughing and sleeplessness over here, there’s still good food!
I think good food is my go-to coping mechanism.
All hell might be breaking loose, but by golly there is going to be dinner on the table!
I was recently talking to my dear friend Marie about how I put way too much stock in dinner time.
The day could have been awful, but if dinner is delicious and we have a great time at the table, the whole day becomes a win in my book.
On the flip side, if the day is wonderful, but dinner is a bust because people don’t like what I made or there’s lots of whining and fussing, I scrap the whole day.
Yeah, I’m a little crazy like that.
I think this whole approach stems from my childhood. My mom is an incredible cook and no matter how poor we ever were or how tumultuous things were at home, good food was a guarantee.
I loved the aroma of a delicious dinner filling the house. Being greeted by steaming blueberry muffins on a random Friday morning. Freshly baked chocolate chip cookies on the weekend. Sitting around the table eating family favorite recipes was a sweet spot growing up and I could count on it even when relationship dynamics were less than ideal.
John Eldredge wrote an incredible book called Desire and in it he says,
“When we don’t look for God as our true life, our desire for him spills over into our other desires, giving them an urgency they were never intended to bear. We become desperate, grasping and arranging and worrying over all kinds of things, and once we get them, they end up ruling us.
Prone to wander from him, we find we need all sorts of other things. Our desire becomes insatiable because we’ve taken our longing for the Infinite and placed it upon finite things.
God saves us from the whole mimetic mess by turning our hearts back to Him.”
When I read that passage it resonated with me. I totally take my longing for Him and place it upon a myriad of finite things (including dinner!).
The Good News is that He rescued us from this trap when He sent Jesus to die for us. That blood covers all of our wandering and God is working tirelessly to turn our hearts back to Him.
Can I get an amen?!
So dinner…
That dear friend Marie that I happened to be discussing my insane dinner expectations with, is the one who passed this recipe along to me.
She made it for a get together about 10 years ago and it was love at first bite!
This chili is simple and quick but has such a rich taste that you’d think it simmered all day.
Cumin, coriander, garlic, oregano, and cayenne pepper come together to form the most delightfully flavorful broth.
Ground turkey, green chilis, white corn, and great northern beans are hearty and give such a fun variety of texture!
Whip this up with a loaf of my Ridiculously Easy “Panera Style” Bread, and you’ve got a winning fall dinner that’s good enough for company!
Admittedly this recipe was tricky to photograph in a way that makes it look as appetizing as it is. Not to mention, the portion I ladled out for the picture had too much broth, making it hard to see all of the delicious ingredients.
So go ahead and make it and taste the goodness for yourself!
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 1 4oz can diced green chilis
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 15oz can white corn, drained (or equivalent amount fresh/frozen)
- 2 15oz cans great northern beans (don't drain)
- 32 oz chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2 teaspoons coriander
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons oregano
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or less to taste)
- In a large stockpot, heat oil over medium heat.
- Add diced onions and cook until tender, approx 5 minutes.
- Add ground turkey and cook until no longer pink, breaking it up as it cooks.
- Add chicken broth, corn, and great northern beans, stir to combine.
- Add all spices and stir to fully combine.
- Bring pot to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium low and simmer for 15-20 minutes.