Turkey and Chorizo Chili

I came across a recipe for Rachel Ray's chicken and chorizo chili served over buttery polenta. Not a big fan of polenta but intruiged by eating it with chili, I thought I'd give it a try. I changed her recipe a bit - like changed out the chicken for turkey. Remember to add more salt or chili powder if needed - and more butter to the polenta :)

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And I like the polenta with chili!

Turkey and Chorizo Chili

1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 pound chorizo (or turkey sausage would work), chopped
1 pounds ground turkey

2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 (15-ounce) can red beans, drained
1/2 bottle beer (we used a German wheat)
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced fire roasted tomatoes
Salt
3 cups chicken stock
1 cup quick cooking polenta (if you can't find quick cooking, regular is fine)
2 tablespoons butter
1 scallions, finely chopped (optional)
1 tablespoons freshly chopped thyme leaves (optional)

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Heat a big, deep skillet over medium high heat with olive oil. Add chorizo and render its fat, 2 minutes. Push the chorizo off to the sides of the pot and add turkey. Brown and crumble the turkey, 5 to 6 minutes. Season the turkey with chili powder and cumin while it cooks. Combine the onions, garlic, peppers and beans to meats and cook another 5 to 6 minutes. Stir the beer into the chili and reduce the liquid a minute then add the tomatoes and heat through. Season the chili with salt, to taste, and reduce heat to low.

Bring 3 cups stock to a boil in a medium pot, stir in polenta and keep stirring until the polenta masses and thickens to a porridge, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in butter, scallions and thyme and season with salt, to taste.

Fill bowls half way with polenta and make a well in the center. Fill up bowls with chili and serve.

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Guylian Chocolates & Giveaway

Giveaway is closed and a winner has been chosen!

Congratulations Amy & Brian! A representative of Guylian will be contacting you soon about shipping the chocolates to you.

I would like to introduce to you some very delectable Belgian chocolates! Guylian has been producing beautiful artisan chocolates for over 50 years and this week I've had the distinct pleasure of sampling an array of their products.

These are great little chocolates! There are the dark chocolate truffles - my favorite! - and the truffle pralines which are milk, dark and white chocolate swirled together with a slight hazelnut flavor. They come packaged in a variety of sizes, as well as individually wrapped.

Here is a picture of a dark chocolate truffle:

For those out there who have to watch their sugar intake, Guylian makes sugar free milk and dark chocolate bars.

Most impressive to me are the adorable sea creature shapes these chocolates are made into! These are a must have for any party or wedding with a sea/ocean/luau theme.

Quotes from my friends about the chocolate:

"Velvety smooth dark chocolate truffle"

"My daughter has loved Guylian for years! I am so excited to see the individually wrapped praline chocolates!"

"Delicious!"

"The seahorse is just so fun!"

"Just what I needed for an afternoon pick-me-up!"

Visit the Guylian website to learn where to buy the chocolates and to find out more about the company. I do know you can find Guylian at Wegmans, Wal-Mart & Giant. Every once in awhile they are at Marshalls, TJMaxx and Ross. These chocolates are well-priced for their gourmet quality - you can get a large box for around $10.00.

Additionally, Guylian wants to give one of my readers some of their famous chocolates! If chosen as the giveaway winner, you will receive Guylian Original Seashells, 4.4 oz. & Guylian Original Praline Tempations, 4.4 oz. - a $14 value.

To enter the giveaway, just leave a comment below about chocolate! Any comment will do! Remember to leave your email address so I can contact you if you win.

On Friday, February 11 at 12:00 am, I will randomly chose a winner, contact you for your mailing address and then Guylian will send you your goodies! Good luck!

hh

Roasted Chickpeas with Shrimp

In our quest to get sexy wedding day bodies, Adam and I have been looking for healthy dinner recipes. When I was on the South Beach Diet, I found a blog called Kayln's Kitchen and she features tons of great SBD recipes. So I was looking at her site and she recommended a recipe from Whistlestop Cafe Cooking. Chickpeas (I love) and shrimp (Adam loves). I thought it sounded like a hit!


I made it tonight and it was quite tasty! The chickpeas get a nice roasted taste and get a bit crunchy. Shrimp keeps the meal light.


Here is the recipe, adapted from Whistlestop:



1 pound shrimp, peeled
1 can 14.5 oz. chickpeas
2 green onions, chopped - I didn't use cause Adam doesn't care for them
2 tsp lemon juice
2 Tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon dried parsley

salt and pepper



Preheat oven to 400°. Cover a baking sheet with foil.


Rinse the chickpeas and place in a bowl with onions (if using), parsley, lemon juice and oil. Toss in paprika, generously salt and pepper to taste. Allow to sit until ready to roast. Peel and clean shrimp.


Pour the chickpeas onto prepared baking sheet. Place in a hot oven and roast for 10-15 minutes, stirring halfway through. Move chickpeas to end of pan but still in a single layer and place shrimp directly on pan. Roast chickpeas and shrimp for another 5 minutes until the shrimp are pink and curled.

Salmon Stew for Two

Today I am posting a recipe from a blog that I just love! The styling of the blog puts me at complete ease and relaxation. I love the bright photos. They just make me happy. So happy. And the name is French - Cannelle & Vanille (cinnamon & vanilla). Everything sounds better in French. Just the other day at work I was on the phone and said vehicle placard and accidently pronounced "placard" as you would in French. Just sounds better and was easier to say. Oh well.

Anyway, I made a lovely salmon stew. It was scrumptous. At least I thought so. Adam did not. He loved the salmon and that was about it. We have learned he is not a fan of coconut milk and parsnips - at least not in a stew with salmon. But I was selfish and made this stew because I love every ingredient it calls for.

Here is the recipe from Canelle & Vanille - I did exactly as the recipe says except I used celery instead of fennel because I could not find any but I think it would have made it even more delicious when it's included! And added more veg stock (I changed it below to reflect what I did).

Salmon, Fennel, Parsnip and Coconut Stew

Makes enough for 2 people

2 Tbs olive oil
1/2 leek, washed and sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 fennel bulb or a stalk of celery, diced
2 parsnips, scrubbed and diced
2 cup vegetable stock
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
8 oz salmon, skin removed and cut into chunks
Microgreens as garnish (optional)

In a medium pan, heat the olive oil and cook the leek, garlic and fennel for about 5 minutes until tender. Do not let it get brown. Add the diced parsnips, vegetable broth, coconut milk, salt and pepper.

Cover the pot and let it simmer for about 5-10 minutes until parsnips are tender. Add the salmon, cover and let it simmer for another 3 minutes or so, until it turns light pink. Adjust seasoning.