Pumpkin Chili

I am so excited that fall is finally here! To me, fall means nice weather, several big holidays to look forward to (namely Halloween), and pumpkin everything! I usually focus on pumpkin desserts but I thought I would try using pumpkin in something savory. I found a recipe for pumpkin chili and made a few modifications. It was so easy and delicious and we're going to have leftovers all week. This is the perfect recipe for a crisp fall evening.

Ingredients

about 1.25 pounds of turkey (you can also use beef)

1 large onion, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

1 clove garlic

1 can red kidney beans

1 can white kidney beans

2 cans black beans

1 (46 fluid ounce) can tomato juice

1 (28 ounce) can peeled and diced tomatoes with juice

1 (15 ounce) can of pumpkin puree

1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

1 tablespoon chili powder (I would probably add more chili powder next time as we like spice and it did not come out very spicy)

2 teaspoons cumin

1 teaspoon red pepper

cinnamon to taste (optional)

In a large pot over medium heat, cook turkey until it begins to brown. Drain any excess liquid. Stir in onion, bell pepper and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. 

Stir in the beans, tomato juice, diced tomatoes and pumpkin puree. Note, our pot was not large enough for the contents so we split it up into two pots and tried to divide ingredients as equally as possible. Season with the spices.

Simmer for about an hour, continuing to stir every 5 minutes or so.

While the chili was cooking I threw together some Jiffy cornbread muffins. You can buy a box at most grocery stores and while it is not the best cornbread it's pretty good and super easy. It pairs perfectly with the chili!

Enjoy!