Pumpkin Chili

I saw a post online about someone making pumpkin chili and putting them in cute little real pumpkins. I had to jump on this idea because, hey why not? When you think of chili you think, warmth, comfort, spice and flavor. It is the perfect fall time comfort food and is a good one pot meal that lasts for several days.

In making chili, I have always found that experimentation is key. Sometimes you add some spice, other times some sweet and maybe even some tart. In this particular recipe I just made it up as I went along, using a recipe I found online just as a measurement indicator. This chili surprised me, it was flavorful but very smooth (due in fact to the pumpkin puree) and the tartness of the cherry tomatoes was every so slight but was the perfect compliment. It was also very mild, not everyone likes spicy chili so I added cayenne pepper to mine afterwards and it was superb. You can add a tablespoon of crushed red pepper to give it an extra kick.

😀

Pumpkin Chili

Ingredients:

1 Pound Ground Turkey

5 Tbs Organic Pumpkin Puree

1 Can Tomato Sauce

1 Can tomato Paste

1/2 Pint Cherry Tomatoes

1 Red Pepper, diced/sliced

1 Sweet Onion(Vidalia), diced

1 Tsp Cumin

1 Tbs Chili Powder

1/4 Tsp Nutmeg

1/4 Tsp Allspice

2 Tbs Olive Oil

1 Tbs Crushed Garlic

Salt to taste

2 Cans, rinsed Pinto Beans

3 1/4 Cups of water

Instructions:

In a medium frying pan, put some olive oil and start cooking the onions, once softened add the ground turkey. Cook until browned and cooked through. Put aside.

In a medium soup crock add olive oil, red pepper, garlic, all the spices, tomato sauce and tomato paste, cook until aromatic, add the tomatoes, cook for 5 minutes. Add the beans, turkey with onions, stir. Add the pumpkin, stir in. Add the wate, let boil. Cover and reduce heat, letting it simmer for 30 minutes, stirring as needed.

Pour into a bowl, garnish with freshly grated parmesan cheese if you would like or toasted pumpkin seeds. Voila you have some yummy chili!