smoky beef and black bean chili

Hi there!

It’s time again for Tasty Tuesday!

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To find out what Tasty Tuesday’s all about, head over to Lena’s to check it out – just click the hyperlink! She started the whole thing and each week, bloggers link up with their best recipes and other posts about food goodies. It’s pretty fabulous and who knows – maybe you’ll find that new favorite recipe you’ve been waiting for! 🙂

This week, I’m bringing you a new crockpot recipe to try – smoky beef and black bean chili!

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Chili is such a versatile dish and SO perfect when the weather turns cooler and you want something to warm you up from the inside out.

And, using your crockpot makes the whole process so much easier! Just a little bit of prep work, toss everything in, turn it on, and walk away.

When you come home – from work, from building snowmen, from shoveling, from raking leaves, from the gym, etc! – a healthy and hearty dinner is waiting for you to customize and enjoy.

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Smoky Beef and Black Bean Chili
serves 4-6
(doubles easily to serve 8-10)

1 tablespoon fat (bacon fat, olive oil, etc)
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced (remove seeds if you prefer)
6 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons chili powder
1-2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 pound ground beef or bison
2-3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
1 tablespoon adobo sauce from chipotles
Salt, as needed
1 (14.5 ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes (I use Muir Glen)
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained (substitute beans if desired)
Desired toppings: cheese, avocado, sour cream, green onions, tortilla strips, Fritos®, etc

1. Heat fat in large skillet over medium until shimmering. Add onion and peppers (bell and jalapeno), season with salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 6-8 minutes.

2. Add the garlic, chili powder, and cumin; stir to coat and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. And ground beef, season with about 1 teaspoon of salt, and cook, breaking the meat into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until the beef is no longer pink, about 7 minutes. When beef is nearly cooked, add the chopped chipotle peppers and the tablespoon adobo sauce and continue to cook.

3. Transfer mixture to a crockpot, add the diced tomatoes and their juices, tomato sauce, and beans, and stir to combine. Cover and cook 8 hours on LOW or 5-6 hours on HIGH.

4. Taste and season with salt, if necessary. Spoon out into bowls, top as desired, and enjoy! 🙂

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Talk to me: Do you prefer Fritos®, cornbread, or tortilla chips with your chili? What’s your favorite chili topping? Beans or no beans?

– jennifer

Tasty Tuesday – Crockpot Pork Tacos

Hello!

First things first.

Happy Veteran’s Day to all those who have served, those who are currently serving, and those who are preparing to serve. Thank you for all your sacrifices and selflessness.

And, all you military family members – spouses, children, parents, etc – deserve thanks and appreciation, too. I know how difficult it is to watch your loved one(s) go, often many, many miles away, and you’re left to keep things in order at home. That’s a whole different level of service. 🙂

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My favorite sailors! 3 generations of service. 🙂

Now, it’s time for Tasty Tuesday!

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Make sure you head over to Lena’s page and check out all the other Tasty Tuesday yumminess. Like Italian Wedding Soup. Yum! 🙂

This week, I bring you some comfort food that only requires a minimum amount of work.

Pork tacos!

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Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know that roasting pork until it falls apart and tastes UH-mazing can take hours and hours and hours.

That’s why, if you haven’t already, you should most definitely invest in a crockpot!

It does all the work for you!

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Pssst……Christmas is coming…..ask Santa to bring you one. 😉

You put this in the crockpot before you go to work, set the temp to low, and when you come home, you’ll have this!

Pork that’s so tender, it practically falls apart and into the tortillas on its own.

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Top with whatever floats your boat.

Tomatoes or salsa, shredded cheddar, avocado or guac, lettuce, sour cream, etc, etc, etc.

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Heat up some corn tortillas and dinner is served.

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Crockpot Pork Tacos
serves about 8-10, depending on how many tacos each person eats

2-4 pound pork shoulder
4-6 garlic cloves, peeled and quartered
1 whole jalapeño
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon thyme
1-2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
1 (12oz) beer
Corn tortillas

1. Pierce pork roast in several spots and shove garlic clove pieces in roast. Sprinkle with oregano, thyme, and crushed red pepper and place in crockpot. Add jalapeño and beer; cover and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours until pork is tender.

2. Remove roast from crockpot, shred, and make tacos! OM NOM NOM!!

Talk to me: How many tacos can you eat?

– jennifer

Super easy crockpot tomatillo salsa chicken

Hello!

Thank goodness it’s finally Thursday!

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Is it just me or has this been the longest week ever?

I don’t know what it is but I’ve been struggling to get out of the house on time each morning. “On time” in my world is early so it’s not like I’ve been late to work, I’ve just been less early. #firstworldproblems

But still, that’s not like me. I’ll be glad when the weekend is here! Maybe I can recharge my inner clock and get my mornings back in gear.

Although, I’m fairly certain I know why I was dragging a little this morning.

A quick thunderstorm rolled through last night. I know this because I was awakened at 12:30 by the LOUDEST and LONGEST clap of thunder I have ever heard. Seriously, I swear it was right about the house! And then, immediately afterwards, I suddenly had a 60 pound dog blanket.

Yep, this girl is afraid of thunder storms.

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Luckily, the rest of the thunder rumbles were low and far away in the distance so she calmed down pretty quickly and decided to just lay next to me instead of on top of me. 🙂

 So, I’ve been using the hell out of my crockpot this week.

I’m hitting CrossFit after work every day so by the time I get home, I’m hungry and I don’t want to think about what’s for dinner.

I thawed some chicken breasts from the farmer’s market and decided to put this jar of tomatillo salsa we found at Harris Teeter to good use!

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Super Easy Tomatillo Salsa Chicken
serves about 6, depending on how many chicken breasts you use

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or use a combo of breasts & thighs, if you prefer)
1 jar tomatillo salsa (make sure you read the ingredients and avoid fake stuff like high fructose corn syrup, etc)
1/2 cup chicken broth (I added this to cut down on the “green-ness” of the salsa)
salt and pepper to taste
Hot steamed rice
Black beans, rinsed and drained (optional)

Place chicken breasts in crockpot. Top with salsa and chicken broth. Season with salt and pepper.

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Cook on low 8 hours. Serve over rice (and black beans), if desired.

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OM NOM NOM!!!

I’ll be honest – the leftovers for lunch the next day were even better than the original dinner. So, if you can, make enough for leftovers!

Talk to me: Do you prefer red salsa or green salsa? Do you have any pets afraid of thunderstorms? Have you ever tried the “thunder coat?”

We’ve considered it but it’s expensive (like $60!) and it’s not like we can leave her in it all day during spring/summer when severe thunderstorms pop up without warning. THAT couldn’t be good for her.

– jennifer