Cosmic Rhino

I’ve been meaning to put this one up for a while. My sisters and I made a double batch of this a couple months ago and enjoyed the leftovers all week.

Ingredients

• 3 small dried chipotle peppers
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 lbs extra lean ground turkey breast (this is a lot of meat; can use less)
• 1 cup sweet onion, diced
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 1/2 lb fresh tomatillos, husk discarded and skin rinsed
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp cumin, ground
• 1 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
• 4 cups cooked white kidney beans or two 14 oz cans low sodium white kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 1-2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels
• sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 cup low-fat cheddar cheese grated, or 1 cup low-fat sour cream, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

1. Soak chipotle peppers in 1/2 cup boiling water until softened, about 15 min. Cut chipotle peppers in half and remove and discard seeds and stem. Reserve soaking liquid, roughly chop peppers and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, in a nonstick pan, heat oil over med-high heat. Add turkey and onion and cook, stirring with wooden spoon, until all meat is broken into small pieces and cooked through with no pink remaining, about 5 min. Drain and discard fat and transfer turkey mixture to slow cooker.
3. Blend garlic, chopped chipotle peppers and 1/4 cup reserved soaking water in a blender until finely chopped. Add tomatillos and remaining soaking water and blend until smooth.  Pour into slow cooker, add bay leaf and cumin and stir until thoroughly combined. Cover slow cooker with lid and cook on low heat for 4 hours.
4. Fifteen minutes before serving, place cilantro and 1/2 cup cold water in blender and puree until finely chopped. Stir into chili mixture. Add beans and corn, cover slow cooker and continue to cook for another 15 min. Season with salt and pepper. Serve chili in warm bowls, garnished with 2 tbsp grated cheese or dollop of sour cream, if desired.

Serves 6-8.

Thanks to Clean Eating Magazine for this recipe!