Frig/Freezer/Kitchen Sink Chili and Cornbread

Whew!!!!  We finally got some winter temps this weekend in Chattanooga and I was finally able to make some chili!!!  First batch this winter!  I was so excited.  I'm sorry, but I just can't make/eat chili when it's blue skies, sunshine, and 50+ degrees outside.  But I was also on a mission to try to start thinning out my frig and freezer, so decided to concoct a chili recipe using what I had on hand.  Oh they joys of chili!!!  You absolutely don't need a "recipe" to come up with a wonderful, winter meal.  And instead of making a cast-iron skillet of cornbread, I pulled out my cast iron corn-muffin dish and made MY favorite cornbread recipe (out of Joy of Cooking).

Of course, this recipe is ABSOLUTELY negotiable.  Use what you have and what you like.  This is a guideline for myself.  It just happened to turn out wonderfully!

FRIG/FREEZER/KITCHEN SINK CHILI  (4'ish servings)

12 oz ground turkey breast
4 oz hot Italian sausage
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1/2 small onion, diced
1-2 tsp (cloves) garlic, minced
2 cup gazpacho (I made some at the end of summer, this was leftovers)
1/4 cup pico de gallo (again, left over from Super Bowl appetizers)
1 Tbsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
8 oz tomato paste
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
6 oz tomato juice
1 (14.5 oz) light red kidney beans

Heat a large pot.  Spray with vegetable pan spray.  Add onions and peppers until tender.  Add garlic.  Add sausage and crumble, stirring until almost cooked.  Add ground turkey breast.  When meat is cooked,  add gazpacho, pico de gallo, chili powder, cumin, tomato paste, and salt.  Cook until consistency is what you like.  Add cilantro and kidney beans, add tomato juice if you need to thin it out.  

Garnish with cheddar or jack (or pepper jack cheese).  Serve with tortilla chips or cornbread.

SOUTHERN CORNBREAD (one 8" square pan or 12 muffins, or about 16 cornsticks, from "Joy of Cooking")

Preheat oven to 450.  Grease a heavy 9" oven-proof skillet (I use cast iron), or an 8" square glass baking dish with:

1 Tbsp bacon fat, lard, oil, or vegetable shortening

Whisk together thoroughly in a large bowl:

1 1/4 cup cornmeal, preferably stone-ground white
(1 Tbsp sugar with yellow cornmeal)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Whisk until foamy in another bowl:

2 large eggs

Whisk in:

2 cups buttermilk

Add to the dry ingredients and whisk just until blended.  Place the skillet or pan in the oven and heat until the fat smokes.  Pour in the batter all at once.

Bake until the top is browned and the center feels firm when pressed, 20-25 minutes.  Serve immediately from the pan, cut into wedges or squares.  Wrap leftovers in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil to freeze for wonderful leftovers.