Tag Archives: cold weather

Turkey Vegetable Chili

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It has been over 3 weeks and eating healthier is still on the menu.  So while I was at my local grocery store, with every other person in Austin, I decided to step away from the dairy isle and look up some of my favorite recipes.  It was cold outside and I thought a nice bowl of Chili would be the perfect dinner for my family.

I found this Turkey Vegetable Chili on one of my favorite websites, Cooking Classy.  So I pushed my way through the crowds and carts full of crying children and irritated mothers and found all the ingredients I needed.  I found the shortest line (which was not really short at all), paid and went home to make this delicious Chili! IMG_2121[1]

I was so hungry when I got home, that I immediately began cooking the ground turkey. Then the chopping and dicing began and I basically just added cans of beans, tomatoes, chicken broth and threw it all in together!  Very easy and very tasty.  This was great the second night as well for left-overs. I will be making this again!

Give it a try if you are looking for a healthier version of Chili.  You can find the recipe under Soups here or you can go to http://www.cookingclassy.com/.  I love every recipe I have found and tried from her website.

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Drinks and a Movie

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It may not be cold in December in Texas, but January usually does not disappoint. So whenever we finally get a “cold front”, I crave something warm.   I love this recipe from Sallys Baking Addiction for apple cider.   (http://sallysbakingaddiction.com) I also have it listed under recipes if you want to try it.

Sallys Baking Addiction Apple Cider
Chopping Apples

Since our temps turned below 50, I wanted to curl up with a good book or movie as I drank my warm apple cider.  My daughter, Claire, opted for a movie.   She asked to watch Les Miserables.
I have never turned down the chance to watch this wonderful movie, and watching it with my daughter makes the time even more enjoyable!  Great way to spend time together before she heads back to college!  IMG_1818[1]

Homemade Beef Stew…Yum

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I have a tried and true Beef Stew recipe from a wonderful friend from Louisiana. She gave it to me about 25 years ago and I have used it many times since.

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1st Recipe box 1989

I went to my lovely blue and mauve recipe box (from my wedding in 1989) and could not find it in there!  I will find it one day, many years from now, when I clean out all my cabinets.  But I wanted to make the stew for dinner,  so off to Pinterest and other blogs I went in search of an amazing Beef Stew recipe.

I found this one on Pinterest and put it on my board.  You can also find the recipe here.  I still love my friend’s stew, but this one certainly is one I will make again and it was perfect on this cold winter evening.

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tasty vegetables

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searing the meat

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cry, cry, cry

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making the cornbread

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delicious

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Beef Stew

Fall in Love

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IMG_0732[1]I LOVE the FALL!  I love finding my sweatshirts as soon as it hits November 1st.

I love when it turns a little chilly because tortilla soup always sounds good to me. In Texas, however, we may be waiting a while for the weather to turn cold…so my idea of chilly was this weekend when it was in the 60s. Brrrrr.     My friend, Alice, gave me her soup recipe years ago and this has been the one I always go to. My sister Lynda makes it also and loves it.

If you have read any of my my previous blogs, you know I want my girls to love to be in the kitchen. I want them to love finding a recipe and make something from scratch, not a box.  Plus…I want their help.   I certainly don’t want to chop onions all by myself.

Here is a photo of my Tortilla soup.  I purposefully kept my brown avocado and broken sign “Count Blessings” in the background. It reminds me that things are not always perfect.  My photos aren’t perfect and neither is my cooking!  But I do love being creative.  I love attempting to take better photos, learning to cook something new, and finding a recipe that my family and friends love.

I have added the recipe, so give it a try and if you make this delicious soup, let me know what you think! I put it under Mexican Food, since I don’t have a “soup” menu yet.

Thanks Olivia for helping me chop all those onions, and for crying with me during the process.

I usually double the amount of chicken.  I think it makes the soup a little more filling.  And I love fresh cilantro.  How can you go wrong?