Cranberry Corn Muffins

These are an easy treat during the holidays, when cranberries are plentiful! I love the tartness of the cranberries with the hint of sweetness in the cornbread. A little lemon zest lightens it all up.

Ingredients:
~ 1 cup rinsed whole cranberries
1 box cornbread/muffin mix (I use Trader Joe's -- THE BEST!)
1 lemon, zested
+ ingredients listed on cornbread package

Directions:
Combine ingredients as listed on package (usually liquid first). Add lemon zest and mix. Then add dry mix to liquid and cranberries. Combine -- but do not overmix!

Pour into muffin pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. You should see the sides pulling away from the pan and lightly browned.

Let cool and enjoy! These are great to freeze for later, too!

(P.S. Sorry for so many poor quality food photos, these muffins look a lot more tasty in person! Maybe it's time for a quality digital camera?)

Leftover Turkey Chili

I roasted a 22lb bird for Thanksgiving this year. With a group of 8 for dinner there was quite a bit of leftover turkey. (It was all part of my grand strategy to get to try several post-turkey day recipes!)

This is a fantastic chili for a cool autumn day. The turkey really tastes delicious in it. Don't forget the cumin -- it's addition added immensely to the depth of flavor.

Ingredients:
3 Tbl olive oil
2 small/medium onions, chopped
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 large can whole tomatoes (cut up with shears or hand crushed)
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 small can tomato sauce
1 20oz can kidney beans
1.5-2 C pulled turkey (leftovers from Thanksgiving are perfect!) - no skin
3 Tbl chili powder
1 tsp chili flakes (more/less to taste)
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamin
salt to taste

Method:
Saute the onion and green pepper in olive oil in a dutch oven over medium heat for 5-6 minutes, until tender. Add garlic. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. All spices can be adjusted to your taste. If you think it may be too much, start out with less and add it while the chili simmers. Simmer, covered for 1-2 hours. The longer it cooks the richer the flavor gets.

Serve over rice or with cornbread.