As a follow up to my Cranberry Breakfast muffins, I made chili for the first time this afternoon! I stumbled upon a white bean chicken chili recipe a few weeks ago that sounded wonderful and finally got around to cooking it today. Who knew making a tasty and healthy chili was so easy! I think it will make a perfect meal for my husband once he gets home from hunting today even though we’re having a rare and warmer day for mid January – 40’s! This is truly like a heat wave for us this time of year when just a few days ago the high was 20! Speaking of which, is it Spring yet? … Still Winter, isn’t it? We’ll get back to the soup making then 🙂

This was pretty quick to put together and smelled great cooking on the stove top! You could play around with the seasonings to your own liking by adding more or less of ones listed in the recipe or even introducing some additional spices to the soup. For instance, my taste buds don’t tolerate spicy too well, but if yours do you could certainly add a jalapeno pepper to the soup! One spice I did a heaping teaspoon of was cumin; I don’t know what it is about the smell and flavor of this spice, but I just love it!

You’ll find the recipe below should you decide to cook a tasty soup for yourself and your family this Winter! I’m going to heat ours back up on the stove for a quick dinner before a movie date at the local theater with my hubby 🙂 Enjoy!!

White Bean Chicken Chili

Ingredients:

• 7 cups chicken broth
• 4 – 15 ounce cans of Bush’s Beans Great Northern Beans
• 1 teaspoon parsley
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon paprika (optional)
• ¼ teaspoon ground red pepper
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
• 1¼ pound chicken breast, cubed
• 1 cup onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup cilantro leaves, packed

Instructions:

1. In a large stock pot bring chicken broth and beans to a boil.
2. Add parsley, cumin, oregano, paprika, red pepper, black pepper and salt. Reduce heat to medium low and let simmer.
3. In a saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. Add chicken and saute about 4-6 minutes then add to pot.
4. In same pan, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until softened.
5. Rough chop ½ cup of cilantro and add to onion and garlic mixture. Saute for a few seconds then add all to pot.
6. Let chili simmer at least another 30 minutes.
7. Before serving, add the remaining cilantro.

As always, thanks for reading!!