Light & Healthy Chili

I love chili. We eat it from the first day of fall until the very end of winter. It is an entire meal in a bowl, super easy, and if you follow a recipe like this one, pretty darn healthy. I also really love cornbread and making chili is obviously a great excuse to have some cornbread too.

This recipe is super simple - so simple in fact, I already had it written down in text to my very non-cooking husband. Daniel is a fabulous baker but cooking is not his thing, so if he can do it, I swear you can too. I add zucchini to help lighten things up and round this out to really be a full meal. You can also add finely chopped button mushroom (and I do sneak them in sometimes, even though Daniel is not a fan - but he doesn’t notice when I chop them finely).

You will notice that I do not use a chili spice mix here, but instead, list the spices to make your own. You can substitute a mix, but unless that mix is purely spices, I truly do not recommend it. You don’t need MSG, anti-caking agents, or anything else in your chili.

Things to note:

• Like always, please please please use real DOC/Certified San Marzano tomatoes if you can. It really matters.

• All seasonings should be used in equal parts and then to taste. Chili is such a subjective thing. I start with equal parts (say 1 tsp of each) and then adjust from there.

Light & Healthy Chili

Ingredients

• 1 onion, chopped

• 2 shallots, finely chopped

• 3 cloves of garlic, or organic, jarred equivalent

• 3 zucchini, chopped into small pieces

• 2 lbs lean ground turkey

• 2 32 oz cans of San Marzano plum tomatoes, hand crushed

• 1 16 oz can of organic tomato sauce

• 1 can of beans (cannellini beans, dark red kidney beans, etc), rinsed

• Onion powder

• Garlic powder

• Chili powder

• Paprika (not smoked)

• Cayenne (optional, I omit and throw jalapeños on top)

• Salt (I use TJ’s garlic salt)

• Pepper

To Make

1. In a large soup pot or big enamel cast iron dutch oven, saute onions and shallots in a little bit of olive oil or butter until they are transparent.

2. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add salt and pepper.

3. Add ground turkey and saute until brown and crumbled.

4. Add remaining seasonings and zucchini and stir.

5. Add beans and tomatoes and tomato sauce and stir. Bring to a boil and then reduce to low.

6. After 20 minutes, carefully taste and add seasonings as needed. Continue to cook on low for another 5-10 minutes.

7. Serve with desired toppings. We love cilantro, avocado, jalapeños, shredded cheddar, and sour cream.