Chicken Chili KABLAM!!!

Since the weather has finally (and semi-consistantly) begun to turn cold, what better than to cozy up with friends... and a amazing bowl of chicken chili w/ sweet cornbread. Basically - I pulled this recipe out of thin air... I've never really made a chili before, much less a chicken chili so this was shear luck that I pulled this off. YAY FOR EXPERIMENTING!

Ingredients for the chili -

• 4 chicken breasts – boneless and skinless

• 1 can of pinto beans

• 1 can of chili beans

• 1 can of red kidney beans (rinsed)

• 2 cans of diced tomatoes

• 2 cans of tomato paste (small can)

• ½ of a large red onion – chopped

• ½ of a green pepper- chopped

• 1 – 10oz bottle of chili sauce.

• ½ cup of vegetable oil

• 3 tbs of red chili powder

• 2 tbs of coriander powder

• 2 tbs of cumin powder

• 1 cup of water

• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Place chicken breasts in and poach.

2. In another pot, combine the all the other ingredients and bring to a high heat (even a slight boil). Stir for about 5 minutes then turn the heat down and let simmer for a good 20 minutes.

3. Check the chicken – when it's done it will be white and juicy – use a knife to slice it down the middle to check and see if it's white thru-and-thru.

4. Once the chicken is done, take it out – place it on a cutting board and shred the chicken with two forks. After you have the chicken shredded – place in the pot w/ the rest of the chili and then continue to simmer for about 15-20 more minutes. This way all the lovely flavors of the chili infiltrate the chicken. (HA I just said infiltrate and chicken in the same sentence.)

5. Turn off burner, serve in bowls, top with cheese and a piece of cornbread [see recipe below]. ENJOY!

Ingredients for cornbread

• 2 boxes of JIFFY cornbread

• ¼ cup of sugar

• 1 can of corn

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400.

2. In a bowl – prepare the cornbread batter like it says on the back of the box.

3. Add the sugar and corn – stir till everything is even.

4. Grease pan [9x13in] (best if it's a glass/pyrex dish) and add batter.

5. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Cut, serve, and enjoy!

I hope you like this recipe... and even though you may have your doubts about chicken chili - it's HEALTHIER than regular, and just as good... not to mention FILLING... No joke - I could only eat one bowl and I was stuffed!

PS. NEIL YOU NEED TO POST THE LASAGNA RECIPE!