Chicken Chili with Summer Squash & Corn

I’ll admit, the first time I made this recipe, it was the middle of September. Not exactly an ideal time for chili but I was craving something warm and cozy while I watched my first full day of football in Kansas City. In my defense, I think it was definitely below 75 degrees outside, which warrants chili in my mind. Today there's snow on the ground and the feels like is 27, I am wearing a sweater, and it's chili time.

My mom said chili can’t be called chili if there aren’t any beans in it. Is that a thing? I just don’t like the texture of beans, so why would I ruin perfectly good “chili” just for the sake of it actually being considered “chili?” My normal chili is really just ground beef, Italian sausage, and tomato sauce so I guess without beans I’m essentially just eating meat sauce as a meal. So I guess that’s kind of weird.

ANYWAYS. I’m stalling. Chicken chili time. Woot woot.

Ingredients:

· 2-3 chicken breasts

· 3 bell peppers

· 5 jalapeños, deseeded as desired

· 1 Vidalia onion

· 5 plum tomatoes

· 1 8oz can tomato paste

· 2 large summer squashes (about 2 cups or however much squash you want, honestly)

· 2 cups frozen corn

· Water on hand

· Olive oil

· 2 tbsp. butter

Chicken seasoning:

· Salt, pepper, and paprika. Just eyeball it. Don’t use too much paprika if paprika scares you.

Chili Seasoning:

· ¼ cup chili powder

· 2 tbsp. paprika

· 2 tbsp. garlic powder

· 1tsp cayenne

· 1 tsp salt

· 1 tsp pepper

Optional:

· Green onions, sour cream, shredded cheddar

Instructions:

· Boil a pot of water.

· Take your tomatoes and make a little “X” with a knife at the bottom. Once your water is boiling, add a tsp. of salt and throw your tomatoes in there.

· Boil tomatoes for 5 minutes then set aside.

· Season your chicken with salt, pepper, and paprika. Cook in a pan with olive oil on medium/high heat for 6 minutes per side or until chicken is cooked all the way through.

· Shred chicken with forks and set aside.

· Dice bell peppers, jalapeños, and onion in small-ish cubes and set aside.

· Quarter your squash into semi-thick slices. (1/8 of an inch, I’d say. You be the judge). Set aside.

· Take your cooled tomatoes and peel them. Put them into a food processor/blender with an 8oz can of tomato paste and 1 cup water. Blend that puppy up and set aside.

· Get your spices for the chili ready. Combine chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne, salt, and pepper in a small bowl and set aside.

· In a large pot, heat up 2 tbsp. olive oil and 2 tbsp. butter

· Once butter is melted into the olive oil, add your peppers and onion. Cook for ~5 minutes or until onions become translucent.

· Add your squash to the party. Cook for ~2 minutes. Make sure you stir it around a lil.

· Add shredded chicken! Dump in chili spices! Yes!

· Stir it up, ensuring everything in the pot gets coated with seasoning.

· Add tomato puree and stir. It should be thick, but not super thick. Hopefully the pictures help.

· If it seems too thick, add water or canned tomato sauce if you have that on hand.

· Add frozen corn!

· Cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes.

· Make sure you taste it to ensure it’s at your desired level of chili spiciness! You can always add more spices if you’re feeling particularly ~spicy~

· Top with green onions, sour cream, and cheddar! YUM.