White Chicken Chili with Honey Drizzled Cornbread

Sometimes, the stuff in the box is perfect and needs no tampering.  That's how I feel about McCormick's white chicken chili seasoning and definitely Jiffy corn muffin mix.  That stuff is PERFECT and should not be messed with!  The honey drizzled cornbread makes a great sidekick to this easy-to-make white chicken chili that is packed with extra veggies and a kiss of cilantro and lime.  I make my cornbread thick (double batch) in an 8"x8" pan.  Muffins are for wimps.

White Chicken Chili

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 can of cannellini beans (DO NOT DRAIN)
1 red pepper, seeded and diced
1/2 cup cilantro
4 stalks of celery with leaves, leaves separated, washed and set aside, stalks washed and diced
1 medium sweet onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper (seeded for mild, whole for hot)
1 packet of McCormick White Chicken Chili Seasoning
1 can of beer (a wheat beer or pale ale works well for this recipe)
1/2 cup water
Juice from 1/2 a lime
Salt and pepper to taste

First, measure out 1/2 cup of the beer for the recipe.  Drink the rest of the beer while you chop up your ingredients.  Knife work before drinking is okay, and knife work while drinking is okay.  It's the knife work after drinking that I don't recommend.  Now that the prep work is done, let's move on to the first step.

In a large skillet (deeper is better for this recipe), heat the two tablespoons of olive oil.  Add the onions and garlic and saute until the onions begin to turn clear.  Add chicken and cook until no longer pink.

Add the diced celery, red pepper, cannellini beans (DO NOT DRAIN), and jalapeno pepper to the skillet.  Cook for 2 minutes.  Add the 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of beer.  Stir well, and bring to a boil.  Stir in the contents of the McCormick seasoning packet.  Reduce heat and simmer for 5-7 minutes until veggies are starting to soften.

While this is cooking, finely chop your celery leaves and cilantro together.  Add them to the skillet.  Squeeze the juice from half a lime into the mix as well.  Cook until veggies are tender (about another 2-5 minutes).

At this point, you should check the consistency of the chili.  If you want it thinner, add a little more water (1/4 cup).  If it is too thin and you want it to thicken up, continue to simmer, uncovered, letting the water cook out.  It will also thicken a little upon standing.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Corn Bread

Ingredients:  


2 Boxes of Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix
2 eggs
milk

First, follow the instructions on the box.  Second, follow the instructions on the box.

Drizzle honey or molasses over the finished product, and eat (with butter if necessary) while it is still warm.