It's chili in here!

Well, not really. I think my car said 93 degrees when I was heading home from work at 4. I love summer (like LOVE), but part of me is ready for it just to get a few degrees cooler so that its bearable.

With cooler weather in mind, and thinking of an easy meal, not the temperature, I decided to make some yum Chicken Chili.

Pretty simple ingredients:

1/2 onion
4 cloves of garlic
1 lb. of chicken (I suggest skinless boneless chicken breast)
2 jalapenos, sliced and diced with no seeds
1 can of white beans
1 can of kidney beans
1 can of corn
1 can diced tomatoes with their juices
1 28 oz. of tomato sauce
salt
black pepper
cumin
chili powder
onion powder
garlic powder

optional:
cheese to sprankle on top
green onions
oyster or saltine crackers

Pretty cheap buys at the grocery store.

The second I began I realized my first mistake. I had gotten skinless chicken thighs. WHAT? UH! Great. So I had to cut the meat off the bone and let me tell ya... not a lotta meat. So, I had to de-bone my tiny chicken thighs first. 

I couldn't bear to show an up close view because it was oogly. 

Turning my stove eye to medium, I swirled a couple of tablespoons of oil in my large pot.

Then, I chopped up some onion and tossed it in. I let the onion go for a while on its own with some fresh black pepper.

Then I minced the 4 cloves of garlic and added it to the pot after a few minutes.

Next came the chicken into the pot. I let the chicken lose its pink before going to the next step.

While my chicken cooked, I sliced up some jalapenos and (accidentally) a banana pepper and threw them into the pot too.

Then I dumped in the corn, kidney beans, white beans, and stewed tomatoes and brought to a boil.

After 2 minutes I put the can of tomato sauce in and brought to a boil.

Lastly, I sprinkled in a couple of shakes of cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic power, salt, and some more pepper.

Stir it all and get the whole shebang nice and mixed. Cover with the lid and turn to lower. Let simmer for about 20 minutes or so.

In the meantime... I made a delicious glass of chocolate milk with salt! Did anyone watch that on "Modern Family" last night? I HAD to try it. Here is the link to the episode. Sooo good.

Then serve! Sprinkle with cheese or add a dollop of sour cream. Oyster crackers or saltines are also delicious.

My mother made the best chili growing up. She used ground beef and lots of kidney beans. She will claim I didn't like it growing up, but in hindsight, WOW. Go Mama.