The Comfort of Spice

Soup is one of the best winter warmers outside of hot cider or a creamy cocoa. A slow simmer of vegetables and meat in a savory broth fills the house with a heady aroma. Leaning in over the steaming bowl and inhaling makes you forget the ice, snow and cold outside, giving you a nice warm feeling all over. When there is snow outside, I'm seized by a yearning for spicier, heartier soups like a nice gumbo or chili. Our snow is gone now, but when we had it I made one of my favorites, turkey chili.

Now there are a hundred different ways to make chili but no matter what extras you like to add on, the big three things to include are meat, peppers and a sauce to bind them. I prefer using some sliced fresh peppers in my chili and as a garnish. Unfortunately my jalapenos fell victim to the cold long ago so my winter chili gets its kick from chili powder and pepper sauce. If you really like some heat in your chili, dried or canned hot peppers are the way to go. Ground turkey in chili is my favorite but I make sure to get turkey with a little fat in it - a freshly ground mix of light and dark meat usually does the trick. A little fat in your meat when it is below freezing is not a bad thing.

Simple Turkey Chili

1T vegetable oil
1lb freshly ground turkey(or meat of choice)
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 a large green pepper, seeded and chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 28oz can of diced tomatoes
1 15oz can of dark red kidney beans
1T chili powder
salt, pepper and pepper sauce to taste

Pour oil in a deep soup pot or skillet over medium high heat. When
hot add turkey and cook until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Add
onions, pepper and garlic and cook about 5 minutes until onion starts to
soften. Add tomatoes, beans, chili powder, a dash of salt and pepper and
bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring
occasionally. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.

Best topped with grated cheddar, sour cream and fresh jalapeno
peppers.