Chili and Cornbread

Well, I had fun writing about my dinner yesterday, so I decided to make a post about tonight's culinary fares.  And nothing's better on a fall day than a pot of chili with a side of cornbread.  Yum!  And it turned out quite well, despite the fact that I had to take a hiatus in the middle since I didn't realize I was missing an ingredient.

I got the recipe for Three Bean Turkey Chili from my sister-in-law Jenny shortly after moving here to Germany.  Since then, it's become a bit of a staple in our house.  Marshall loves chili, and it's kind of a comfort food of ours, especially in the winter.  Recently, I saw it in my Fall edition of Kraft Food & Family Magazine.  The ingredients are all the same, but the method of cooking is different.  Where the Kraft version calls for using a slow cooker, my sister-in-law's version, and the way I cook it, uses a saucepan.  You can find the recipe here.   

Over the past year and a half or so I've been making this, I've done quite a bit of experimentation with the recipe, and while the basic formula is the same, I've added a few things to it (big surprise, huh?).  First, I use a 2nd can of kidney beans.  Because there's more beans in what I make, I add a small can of plain tomato sauce into the mix also.  This is an addition I especially like, because I like my chilis tomato based and on the thinner side.  On top of all this, I use a 1/2 Tablespoon of each the chili powder and cumin instead of a teaspoon.  It's not a big change, but eh, it's a change nonetheless.  I also chop up some fresh cilantro to add into the mix, and keep a little bit on the side for a garnish in the end.  I let it simmer in the pot for about 20-30 minutes before serving, then add cheese and garnish with some chopped cilantro.  Marshall likes his with a dollop of sour cream, and I admit that sounds tasty, so next time I'll make sure to have some on hand, too.

And voila!  This is so simple to make, and so delicious.  What's not pictured here is the small side salad I made to go with it, which I ended up eating as this finished simmering.  (What?  Baby Jilly was hungry!)  As always, I try to choose meals that are healthy for us in addition to tasty.  The ground turkey is surprisingly yummy in this dish, although both Marshall and I have a thing for ground turkey.  The best part about chili: the leftovers!  I now have an excellent lunch for tomorrow before work!

Our first post!

Hey everyone!  I never thought I'd jump on this blogging bandwagon, but with us being so far away, I decided why not?  That, and I've had quite a few people asking me about my recipes and cooking and such that I decided to use this to share what I've been cooking.  So, this is kind of a cross between a blog about cooking and a blog about our little family.

As of today, I'm 26 weeks pregnant with baby Jillian.  That means in hopefully 14 weeks or less we'll be bringing home our little bundle.  We're both getting pretty anxious to see our Jillybean.  I'm getting quite a bit poofy myself.

As my 2nd trimester is now in it's final 5 days, I'm starting to feel a bit of the pains associated with being pregnant.  Poor Marshall is slowly transitioning to sleeping on the couch.  I keep trying to get him not to, but between me, Jillian, and the assortment of pillows it takes for me to get comfy, I can't say I blame him for wanted to sleep somewhere more comfortable for him.

Like I said before, this blog will also center around food.  I love food (that goes without saying), and one of the things I've learned about myself since moving to Germany is that I really love to cook.  I've also learned that I'm not too bad at it, and have really developed a passion for it.  My mom especially is always asking about things I'm cooking.  I do have one problem: I tend to improvise from recipes, so when people ask me for a recipe it takes me forever to explain what I change from the original.

Tonight I made Aloha Pork Chops from Kraft Recipes.  I did change it up quite a bit (as usual.)  I used boneless chops instead of bone-in.  I made a glaze to put on the chops before frying them, using about 1/4 cup of honey, 1 Tbsp. soy sauce, and a pinch or two of red pepper flakes.  I'm always slightly intrigued by the combination of honey and soy sauce, probably because I can't stand either of them by themselves, but they sure make one nice glaze!  After brushing the glaze on the chops, I added them to the skillet.  I used medium heat instead of med-high like the recipe calls for because it's been my experience with pork chops that the outsides tend to get slightly burnt before the insides are done and they tend to lose a lot of moisture.  I also cooked regular rice in a separate pan instead of using instant, since I do not like instant rice.  I added a bit of the chicken broth to the water when I made the rice to tie it all in together.  I also added a Tbsp. of soy sauce to the sauce after I got it mixed together.  Other than that, I pretty much followed the rest of the recipe.

Some things did go wrong for me with this dish.  Because I didn't use instant rice, the sauce was way too watery.  I ended up having to drain some of it off.  I think next time I'll use only 1/4 cup of chicken broth instead of 1/2 cup.  There's enough juice from the pineapple to make up for that easily, and I think it'll still taste the same for the most part.  In the end, though, this meal was tasty and delicious, and I would definately make it again.  It had a sweet and sour pork kind of vibe going on that I really enjoyed.  So did Jillian, who has been kicking and rolling nonstop since dinner, a good sign for sure.  I steamed up some organic broccoli to eat on the side, but found myself mainly ignoring that and sticking to the main course.  Between the pork, rice, peppers, and pineapple, there was enough variety that I don't feel a side was necessary.  Plus, it's one of Kraft's healthy living recipes, and provides a variety of food groups all in one: grains, meat, and fruits and veggies.  Add a nice glass of milk, and you've got a pretty balanced meal!  The peppers and pineapple were actually my favorite part of this dish. 

Marshall is working tonight, so the verdict will be out until he gets home on whether or not he enjoys it.  He doesn't like the texture of pineapple, so we've got that against us already, but he does like the flavor.  You got a lot of sweetness from the pineapple, but that's about it, the flavor is not overwhelming.  I think the Tablespoon of added soy sauce neutralized it a bit.

And here's the finished product.  Yum!