Rainy Day Chili

I made this impromptu chili last night using what I had on hand in my kitchen.  It's cold and rainy here so I didn't want to venture out to the grocery store.  I was a bit nervous to see what the results would be but I'm happy to report it turned out DELICIOUS!  I'm so excited because I totally winged this recipe.  Yay me.

1 can 14.5 oz. diced tomatoes
1 can  10 oz. rotel
1 can 7 oz. diced green chile peppers
1 can 15 oz. pinto beans, drained
1 can 15 oz. black beans, drained
1 can 15 oz. corn, drained
1 bottle of beer
pinch of cumin
1/2 lb. chorizo, browned
1 lb. chicken sausage, browned
chili powder
crushed red pepper
whole grain tortilla chips & shredded sharp cheddar cheese

In large pot add first eight ingredients.  Brown chorizo in separate pan and add to pot.  Brown chicken sausage and season with chili powder and crushed red pepper, then add to pot.  I let the chili simmer on the stove for one hour.  Yumm-O.  I crushed up a few Kirkland organic tortilla chips (only has 5 ingredients!) and added some shredded sharp cheddar cheese.

Tortellini Soup

I found this tortellini soup recipe a couple years ago on All Recipes and we absolutely love it.  It's easy to make and really delicious.  I look forward to making this soup every year as soon as the weather turns cold!  The only modification I made to the original recipe is I add protein (for the hubs).

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small red onion, chopped

1 zucchini, chopped

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes

2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth

1 tablespoon white sugar

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1/4 cup red wine

1 dash hot pepper sauce

1 (11 ounce) can white corn, undrained

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

8 ounces cheese tortellini (I use whole wheat)

2 links chicken sausage (I typically use Hot Italian or Chicken Parmesan from the Sprouts meat counter)

In a large pot over medium heat, cook onion, zucchini and garlic in oil three minutes, until onion is translucent. Stir in crushed tomatoes, broth, sugar, Italian seasoning, wine and pepper sauce and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and stir in corn and Parmesan.  Separately brown sausage and add to large pot.  Simmer 30 minutes.               

Stir in tortellini and simmer 10 minutes more, until pasta is tender.               

Ravioli Lasagna

Two friends brought us versions of this recipe when Jack Henry was born.  I had never heard of lasagna made with ravioli and thought it'd be super easy to make so I doctored up the basic recipe.  This is now my go-to dish that I make for new neighbors or friends who've just had a baby.  If we have friends or family over and I make this dish, I'm always asked to forward the recipe.  You can make one huge casserole, or make 2 smaller ones.  They freeze great, too.

1-24 oz jar marinara sauce (more if you prefer more sauce)
1 large bag of spinach & cheese ravioli, thawed (Costco)
1-10oz box frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed of excess liquid
8oz  shredded mozzarella cheese
1 zucchini
1 squash
1 container mushrooms
3/4-1 lb. chicken sausage
2-3 cloves minced garlic
preheat oven to 400.
wash and slice veggies then sautee the zucchini, squash and mushrooms in a pan.  i season them with olive oil, salt, pepper, & italian seasoning.  set aside. 
using the same pan, brown chicken sausage (remove casings), season with olive oil and red pepper flakes.  set aside.
spoon a thin layer of sauce into the bottom of a 9x13inch baking dish. layer the ravioli, spinach, veggies, and meat.  sprinkle minced garlic on top.  layer half the sauce and half the mozzarella.  put one more layer of ravioli on top then finish with sauce and sprinkle with mozzarella.
cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. uncover and bake until bubbling 10 minutes.
prep time: 30 min.

It's pretty hard to mess up this recipe.  I'd love to try this vegetarian style, adding in broccoli and eggplant, but that wouldn't fly with the hubs.  He has to have meat.  I rarely eat red meat so I always use chicken or turkey sausage when I make this.  I buy whatever is on sale at the meat counter. The chicken sausage was on sale this week at Sprouts for $2.99/lb.   It's fresh and so good.  Also, I would've preferred to use whole wheat ravioli (it's high in fiber and protein) but I used what I had in my freezer.

TIP:  Instead of using a dinner plate, serve this on a salad plate.  It will help with portion control. 

Costco Ravioli