Turkey, Pumpkin, Bean Soup/Chili!

After I read this original recipe on Gina's Skinny Recipes, http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/10/crockpot-turkey-white-bean-pumpkin.html, I knew I'd have to try it! Since I love black beans, had all ingredients on hand, AND people in the comments wondered how to make it with dried beans instead of canned, I decided it was worth posting my adaptation. I've made it twice so far and it's hearty, filling, and healthy. Also, I've had pureed pumpkin in my freezer with nowhere to go for who knows how long. Also, you really can't taste the pumpkin at all, but I'm pretty sure it's good for you. Here it is!

What you need:

• A little olive oil
• 1.25 lb. of ground turkey
• 1 can of dried beans, presoaked overnight.  I used 1/2 cup of Great Northern beans and 1/2 cup of black beans. Forget to soak your beans ahead of time?
• 2 C chicken broth/stock
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 can of pureed pumpkin. NOT PUMPKIN PIE MIX. Just plain old pumpkin!
• 1 4-oz can diced green chilis
• 1-2 chopped bell peppers (I added an extra red pepper after I took the picture.)
• 2 tsp. of minced garlic, or 4 minced garlic cloves
• 2 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. oregano
• 2 bay leaves

Optional toppings:

• Sour cream or Greek yogurt
• Green onions and or cilantro.

What to do

• Soak beans overnight or quick soak, using the method above. Try not to be alarmed by the purple beans greeting you in the morning. Rinse.
• Brown and drain ground turkey.
• While the turkey is browning, dice onion. Add beans, broth, pumpkin, green chilis, and spices to the crockpot. (You can also dice the peppers, but won't add them yet)
• Add browned turkey to crockpot, and cook on low for 7-8 hours, or high for 3 1/2-4 hours.
• I don't care for super soggy peppers so I added them in at the end., about 1/2 hour before serving.
• Serve with sour cream or Greek yogurt, green onions, and cilantro.

Verdict:
Yum! You could even add some more broth if you want this to be "soupy" but I liked the thick consistency. Add more chili powder if your family likes some kick! I liked it just the way it was.

Coconut Bison (or Beef) Curry with Vegetables

It's a cool, drizzly day and I've had some bison stew meat in the freezer for awhile. I was sick of the typical stew: meat, potatoes, carrots. This creation is what I came up with! It definitely doesn't fall under the "quick & easy" or "5 ingredients or less," but if you have the time, it's so worth the effort!

You don't HAVE to make the coconut rice, but it takes care of the "what to do with a 1/2 can of coconut milk?" question.

This is versatile as far as vegetables go. Use what you've got, and let me know what was good in the comments!

What you need:
For the curry:
1.5 cans (3 cups) light coconut milk
1 can beef broth
3 T/3 minced cloves garlic
3 T green curry paste (I actually intended to use red but green is all the store had!)
1 lb. stew meat: I used bison but beef would work Note: This turns out to have a LOT more vegetables than meat-so it's good if you're trying to stretch your meat, but you may want fewer veggies or 2 lb. meat if that's your style!
3 T lime juice
zest of 1/2 lime
1/2 t turmeric
1/4 t salt
1 T soy sauce
 2-3 cups chopped veggies. I used a parsnip, a turnip, 2 carrots, a bell pepper, green beans, and snow peas. Broccoli, cauliflower and sweet potatoes are good in curries too!
2 T each of chopped cilantro and basil leaves
toasted coconut

For the rice:
1 C basmati rice
1 1/4 C water
1 C (1/2 can) coconut milk

What to do:
Chop up veggies and, if not already cubed, meat
Bring coconut milk and broth to a boil, lower heat and let simmer for a few minutes
Add curry paste and garlic and let simmer a few more minutes
Add stew meat and bring back to a boil
Add lime juice, lime zest, turmeric and salt
Add vegetables
Lower heat to a simmer and cover

Start rice: put all rice ingredients in a pot, bring to a boil, remove from heat, cover, and let sit for about 20 minutes.

Let curry cook until meat is cooked through and vegetables soften: 20-30 minutes. Stir in basil and cilantro

Serve over rice. Top with toasted coconut (to toast coconut, a few minutes before you're done, put shredded coconut in a dry pan over low heat and watch it like a hawk until it's lightly browned!)

Verdict/Changes for Next Time:



This was very delicious! I loved the coconut flavor of the rice! A few small changes: I'd use a red pepper if photographing, better colors. :) And it ended up quite liquid-y, even with a bit of corn starch added in. I think I'd let the coconut milk/broth mixture reduce down a bit more before adding the other ingredients. But, overall, it was really, really tasty and I can't wait for the leftovers tomorrow!

My new favorite shrimp recipe!

Thanks again to Kalyn's Kitchen for this delicious shrimp recipe! I've been eating it a couple times a week since I found it, and actually looked online to see if you can get sick from eating too much shrimp (you know, like tuna with mercury?). Good news: you can't! The great news is this takes about a minute to prepare and 8 minutes to cook-love it!


http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2010/02/recipe-for-quick-and-easy-spicy-broiled.html

You'll have to excuse my lousy cell phone picture, I was too eager to eat to bother with my real camera!
*It turns out I'm not able to upload from my cell phone at the moment. Check out Kalyn's pictures, they're mouth-watering!*