A New Year A New Idea - White Chili and Beer Bread

We decided to take it easy this year and stay in with the kids and celebrate the New Year here at home. That meant no hangovers for Mom and Dad this morning! Instead, I made dinner and we watched movies, which sounds absolutely delightful to me. So....you ask, what was for dinner? Let me share with you, and I'll share the recipe as well!

White Chili


Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
coarsely ground black pepper to taste
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 green chili peppers, seeded and minced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 (8 ounce) package mushrooms, sliced
3 (15 ounce) cans pinto beans
4 green onions, chopped
1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
1 cup white wine
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
2 cubes chicken bouillon
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 1/2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 bay leaves

Directions:

In a large pot over medium-high heat, cook chicken in olive oil with black pepper until brown. Stir in onion, garlic and chill's and cook until onion begins to soften. Stir in bell peppers, mushrooms, beans, green onions and parsley. Pour in wine and chicken broth. Season with bouillon, rosemary, thyme, oregano and cumin. Place bay leaves in pot, cover, reduce heat and simmer 90 minutes.
 

When we have Chili, we like to have something we can dip in to the Chili. Just so we can soak up that last drop without having to put the bowl up to our mouth and teach our children bad manners. Last night I was jonesin' for Tastefully Simple's Beer bread, but, alas, to no avail, I was out of it. I decided to Google it and see what I came up with. Of course, you can find ANYTHING on the internet, what a wonderful tool. Although, when my children ask my husband and I if we played their favorite games on the internet when we were little, that makes us feel pretty old! Along with the question, "Did you have a cell phone when you were little?" Anyway, I found a recipe for this Beer Bread I was jonesin' for and I must say that I was impressed. Although, I was all out of beer and didn't want to go to the store and buy a whole case of beer so I could use one bottle. Instead, my mom happened to have some beer at her house where we were hanging out for a little while anyway. The unfortunate thing is that is was Michelob Ultra, no offense to those of you who happen to be fans of Michelob Ultra. But, if you know me, then you know that I'm a fan of the dark beers, oh that would have made my Beer Bread sooo much better. Beggars can't be choosers though. That's what my mom always says, even when I'm not begging. This recipe was almost as easy as opening my $5 box of Tastefully Simple's Beer Bread and adding the beer. It cost me a whole lot less as well, which is always a perk.

Beer Bread

Ingredients:

3 cups self-rising flour
1/2 cup sugar 
12 oz beer - preferably a dark beer for more flavor, or you could try a honey beer, which would be good too.
2 tablespoons melted butter


Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Butter a loaf pan and set aside. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and beer and mix well. The mixture should be sticky. Pour into the loaf pan and bake for 55 minutes. At the last 3 minutes of baking, remove from oven, brush the top of the loaf with butter and return to oven.


Source: Allrecipes.com  and Food Network