Embrace the Pepper

I have a complicated relationship with bell peppers. When I was a kid, they were pretty much the one thing I refused to eat. Actually, I wasn't crazy about vegetables in general, but bell peppers were the worst. They were bitter and always seemed to set my mouth on fire. What's to like about that? So I had to laugh when I realized that I'd made three different things with bell peppers just in one week. Here's the first one.

Tom had been craving cornbread and chili, so I decided to make that. Usually my chili is pretty simple: ground turkey or beef, kidney beans, diced tomatoes, maybe a little onion, and some seasonings. I figured some bell peppers could only improve it. This was by far the best chili I've ever made, and the best part was that it was also the most convenient. In the past, I had always stressed over the seasonings. That was before I discovered chili beans and chili-ready tomatoes. What amazing inventions! These were already packed with chili powder, cumin, onion powder, paprika, garlic...the list goes on and on. The only thing I added was some crushed red pepper because Tom puts it on just about everything. Along the lines of convenience, I also came across some frozen chopped onions in the store; these are a huge deal to me because I hate chopping onions, and we almost always end up throwing the fresh ones away because we can never seem to finish them fast enough. Anyway, the recipe is simple; here it is:

1 lb. ground turkey

1/2 chopped green bell pepper

1/2 chopped yellow bell pepper

1/4 c. chopped onion

2 cans chili-ready tomatoes

1 can dark red kidney beans

1 can black beans

1 can chili beans

1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

Brown ground turkey in a large pot on medium heat. Do not drain! Add peppers and onion, and cook for about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and beans. Fill chili bean can with water and pour into the pot. Stir in red pepper flakes. Bring up to a boil and reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer at least 20 minutes, but as long as 1 1/2 hours.

How simple is that?