As I’m writing this post it is cold, rainy and seriously gloomy outside, making it the perfect time to write all about cozy comfort food. This is an easy veggie-packed turkey chili that gets scooped into creamy roasted butternut squash halves. I’m feeling warmer just looking at these photos! I’m kidding, I’m still chilly, but now I’m also hungry.

Of course because I’m me, aka food-obsessed, I still remember the first time I made this dish. I made it for Matt and I in a teeny kitchen; I have no idea how I sliced the butternut squashes in half since our knife was horrible and probably missing the tip. Side note: for best and safest results, make sure you use a good, really sharp, big knife for halving the squashes. It probably took a lot of muscle, cursing, almost cut fingers and help from Matt, but when you’re determined to eat some chili in butternut squash bowls you can make anything happen!

When we sat down to eat it on our tv trays – there was no kitchen table – we were both in love. Then I didn’t make it again until now because my never-ending waiting list of recipes got in the way. Thankfully when I was looking back through my Rachael Ray’s Look + Cook cookbook I stumbled across it and knew I needed to make it again immediately.

My version is a bit different from the original for quite a few reasons, but one in particular is because I’ve added ground turkey instead of keeping the recipe vegetarian. If you do want to eat the meal meatless, skip the ground turkey and instead add in a can of black beans per Rachael’s recipe.

Since there’s a gooey layer of cheese over the top it’s a little difficult to see all the different vegetables packed in there. We have mushrooms, bell pepper, zucchini, corn and onions – and don’t forget the butternut squash! Although I actually just Googled butternut squash and it’s a fruit because of its seeds, but it “is used as a vegetable,” whatever that means. I’ll take that to mean we’re “using it as a vegetable” in this dish so you’re being super healthy and can splurge on dessert, okay? Enjoy!

Autumn Harvest Chili Stuffed Butternut Squash

 

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Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 3 small butternut squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 8 ounces ground turkey
• 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, quartered
• ½ medium onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 small zucchini, cut into ½” dice
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• Chili powder, see note
• 1 can diced hatch chiles
• 10 ounces frozen corn, or 3 ears of corn on the cob shucked
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
• 1 cup shredded yellow cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Arrange the butternut squash, flesh side facing up, on a large baking sheet. Drizzle the squash halves with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil then season with salt and pepper. Flip the squash over so they’re flesh side down and roast for about 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, carefully turn the squash over and bake for another 15 minutes to brown the edges. If your squash are larger they will need more time to cook to become tender.
3. While the squash is cooking, heat a tablespoon of the olive oil in a large high-sided skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ground turkey, season with salt and pepper and cook until browned, breaking up in the pan as needed. Remove the cooked turkey from the skillet and set aside.
4. Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Add the mushrooms, onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes. Then add the bell pepper and zucchini. Season with salt and pepper and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 8 minutes. Turn the heat to medium and add the vegetable stock, smoked paprika, dried oregano, chili powder, can of hatch chiles, corn, tomato paste and maple syrup or honey. Using an immersion blender or a food processor, puree a cup or two of the chili mixture. This helps thicken it. Add the pureed chili back in (if you used a food processor) and add the ground turkey back in. Let cook for 5 more minutes then reduce heat to low until the butternut squash is done.
5. When the butternut squash halves are done roasting and the chili is ready, scoop the chili into the butternut squash. Sprinkle the shredded cheddar over the mounded chili. Broil the filled squashes for 3 minutes to melt the cheese then serve.

Notes

I don’t like spicy food so I only used about ¼ teaspoon of chili powder. The original recipe calls for 2-3 tablespoons of chili powder so use according to your preference.

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Lauren Main Dishes, Poultry, Recipes 4 Comments

Did you know that tomorrow is National Taco Day? I have zero idea who decided Thursday, October 4th should be National Taco Day instead of a Tuesday, but maybe they just wanted people to celebrate tacos twice this week instead of stacking the celebrations. It also seems a little odd to have National Taco Day in October instead of some spring or summer date when tacos seem to be more on people’s menus, but I am definitely not complaining. Just curious. I’m especially not complaining because it prompted me to create these outrageous Thai Peanut Chicken Tacos! Spiced chicken thighs are layered inside warm tortillas along with some cabbage, cucumber and carrots before being drizzled with an Asian peanut sauce. The tacos are then topped with chopped peanuts and pickled red onions.

The initial inspiration for doing a Thai flavored taco smothered in peanut sauce came from my favorite burrito chain, Boloco. You might remember them from my New England Harvest Salad post, where I even mentioned their Bangkok Thai burrito. I knew if peanut sauce could work so well in a burrito that it would easily translate to tacos. Even though the easy microwave peanut sauce, similar to the sauce for the Sesame Peanut Noodles with Chicken, is delicious, the real star is the marinated chicken thighs. Lately I’ve been experimenting with spices I’m not as familiar with, such as turmeric and coriander, and Matt and I have surprised ourselves by being really into all the dishes I’ve tried so far. I also have been using chicken breasts for all my recipes for so long that I forgot how succulent and juicy chicken thighs can be.

The chicken only needs to marinate for one hour or it can be left overnight if you want it ready when you come home from work. The spiced chicken thighs get baked in the oven for about 18 minutes and after sampling a bite it was really hard to save all the chicken for the tacos and not dive right in. The seasonings along with the lime juice and zest have such a good balance of citrus, nuttiness and warmth, without being spicy. Unless you want it spicy and then you can certainly kick up the chili powder.

Another element in this recipe that I totally took from Boloco is the pickled red onions. Pickled red onions are sweet, vinegary, crunchy and have a very subtle onion flavor. They’re also bright pink and really amp up most burrito or taco combinations. The recipe here is for quick pickled red onions so all you need to do is heat apple cider vinegar, water, sugar and salt before pouring over the thinly sliced red onions to let them sit for one hour. That’s it! It’s so simple I’m shocked I don’t pile pickled red onions on every dish I make.

All together this taco has a winning combination of savoriness, acidity and sweetness and I am declaring it definitely worthy of being enjoyed on National Taco Day – and all subsequent Taco Tuesdays!

Thai Peanut Chicken Tacos

 

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Yield: 4 servings, 8 mini tacos

Ingredients

for the peanut sauce

• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
• 1½ tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1½ teaspoons sesame oil

for the pickled red onions

• ½ cup water
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
• 1½ teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ red onion, thinly sliced

for the tacos

• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 1½ teaspoons ground turmeric
• 1½ teaspoons ground coriander
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon chili powder (depending on spice tolerance)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• Zest from ½ lime
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 8 6-inch tortillas, warmed
• ½ cup sliced red cabbage
• ½ cup matchstick cut cucumber (see note)
• ½ cup shredded carrot
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
• ¼ cup chopped peanuts

Directions

for the peanut sauce

1. Combine the lime juice, peanut butter, soy sauce, water and sesame oil in a small bowl. Microwave for 45 seconds and stir until smooth.

for the pickled red onions

1. Combine the water, apple cider vinegar, sugar and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves then remove from the heat.
2. Place the sliced red onions in a bowl then pour the vinegar mixture over top. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour.

for the tacos

1. In a container or bowl large enough to hold the marinating chicken, combine the minced garlic, lime juice, olive oil, cumin, turmeric, coriander, ginger, chili powder, salt, black pepper and lime zest. Add the chicken thighs and toss until they’re fully coated. Marinate the chicken for at least one hour (it is safe to marinate for as long as overnight if you would prefer).
2. You can grill or bake the chicken. See the recipe note for grilling instructions. To bake the chicken, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the baking sheet with nonstick aluminum foil then place the chicken in a single layer. Bake the chicken for 18-20 minutes, or until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Let the chicken rest for a couple minutes then slice.
3. Top each warmed tortilla with the sliced chicken, red cabbage, cucumber, carrot, parsley and peanuts, dividing between the 8 tacos. Top each taco with some pickled red onions then drizzle each taco with the peanut sauce.

Notes

To cut the cucumber into matchsticks, first cut off the ends of your cucumber. Then, cut your cucumber in half or thirds if it’s really long so you have two (or three) pieces of cucumber. Then cut each piece into ¼” thick slabs. Stack the slabs and cut them into ¼” thick matchsticks.
To grill the chicken: Heat a grill to medium-high heat. Grill the chicken for 4-5 minutes per side, until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. If you want to make sure you don’t overcook your chicken, you could grill them until they reach just over 160 degrees F and then allow for some carryover cooking. This is when the chicken continues to cook after it’s been removed from the grill. Temp it after a few minutes and make sure it has risen to 165 degrees F.

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Lauren Main Dishes, Poultry, Recipes 2 Comments