Chili and Cornbread Recipe

Quick update on my ongoing fitness journey before I head into the MOST AMAZING chili and cornbread recipes you've EVER had.

I have 2 more weeks of P90x3 left. My cleanse went exactly as planned and worked like a charm. I lost 6lbs total and had "skinny face" for my family photos (which I will be posting a few favorites SOON). They turned out fantastic and I felt so skinny and confident. I'm just so proud of myself for getting this far in my journey. It's be a rough road that sometimes feels rockier than other times, but it has always been worth it.

Remember, the choices you make to better your health and get the body that you were created to have will always be worth the sacrifices you make. Sometimes I'm the girl who says we can't eat there because I won't be able to find anything healthy and everyone gives you that look. It's worth it. Sometimes my groceries are boring. Sometimes I don't get the quick emotional fix of a doughnut and I just have to actually work through my true feelings. It's worth it. I'm going to be strong. I will keep up with my daughter on the playground. I'll be able to help my daughter practice sports. I'm going to enjoy my 50s and 60s with my husband just as much as our 20s. It's all worth it.

 Now onto the best Chili and Cornbread Recipe you've ever tasted! No joke this really is amazing. I even took this recipe to a large gathering where everyone was bringing different types of chilies and multiple people kept coming up asking what I put in mine that makes it soooooooo good.

The secret is this: nothing. I keep it so basic and I think basic recipes have gotten lost in world of foodies and culinary art. Most people are trying to create your grandmother's basic chili and then put 20 different seasonings in it that you would have to travel half the world to find. The result is chili, but not your grandmother's.

Here's to my grandmother, one of the best cooks I know.

Basic Chili

1 lb Ground Turkey (ok I actually grew up on ground Venison but I don't have any on hand)

1 sweet onion, chopped

1 T Worcestershire sauce (admittedly I put this in almost everything)

1 Green Pepper, chopped

1 Yellow Pepper, chopped

1 Orange Pepper, chopped

1 can Dark Red Kidney Beans (no sugar added), rinsed

2 cans Chili Beans (no sugar added) NOT rinsed

1 Qt Stewed Tomatoes (semi-blended so it's not so chunky)

1 T chili powder

Brown burger, onion, W sauce, for 5 min. Add peppers. Continue cooking until burger is completely browned and peppers are softening. Add beans and stewed tomatoes. Add chili powder. 

Let it simmer for 30 min. Taste test. If it's too acidic you can add 1 tsp of sugar. (it won't kill you, I promise)

Now onto the Cornbread. This has been a 3 year process for me. It can be SO HARD to find a good cornbread recipe. Too sweet. Too bland. Too crumbly. Corn or no corn. This is not something I choose to "healthify", but recently I did switch out the sugar for honey and was in HEAVEN. I have learned a lot of lessons and literally burned my way to finding the best cornbread recipe. Enjoy.

Johnston Cornbread

4 eggs, separated

1 C Buttermilk (or 1C reg & 1T vinegar, let set for 5 min) 

1t Vanilla

3/4 C butter, melted, cooled

1 C cornmeal

1 C Honey 

1T Baking Powder 

1t salt

2 C flour 

1 can Creamed Corn

Preheat oven to 375. Put egg whites in your mixer with whisk attachment and let it go to town while you do everything else because you  need them to form stiff peaks it takes FOREVER if you do it by hand. Combine egg yolks, milk, cooled butter, and vanilla in a bowl. Mix in honey and creamed corn. Stir in flour, cornmeal, salt, and baking powder until just combined. Don't go crazy. Fold in eggs whites slowly until mixed in evenly. Pour batter into greased 8x8 pan and bake for 40-45 min. Check center with a knife or toothpick until it comes out clean. 

This has BY FAR been my most successful cornbread venture to date. This recipe  is the best I found, and then adapted to create what I really wanted. 

I hope your family enjoys these recipes on a cold, fall evening. I'm horribly addicted to chili, so any semi-brisk day I am quickly pulling out my cans of beans! 

What is your favorite kind of Cornbread? Sweet? Plain? Do you love corn in yours? Let me know in the comments below!! 

xoxo, 

Summer