Mom's Turkey Chili

My two favorite dishes my mom would make during the fall & winter months is chicken stew and turkey chili.  Like the stew (which I already made and will be doing so again soon) most of the work is done while the chili is cooking on the stove. Also, it freezes really well for a few months.


Ingredients:
1 - 1 1/2 lb ground turkey breast
1  green pepper, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1teaspoon flour
2 cans of red kidney beans (19oz each, drain a little of the excess juice)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 quart tomato juice
1 cup water

Chili paste:
    2 teaspoons chili powder
    1 teaspoon flour
    1/4 cup water
    salt and pepper as desired


Directions:

1. Put a little butter/cooking spray inside pot and brown turkey slightly. 
2. Sprinkle teaspoon of flour, add onions until transparent, then add peppers until somewhat soft (about 15-20 minutes). 
3. Add brown sugar, tomato juice, beans and water. 
4. In a small bowl mix chili powder, flour and water (can add a little cayenne for a kick). Stir well to blend.
5. Add chili paste little by little, stir well and let the the chili start to bubble.  Cover loosely and cook slowly on the stove for 2 hours.  If the chili is think, uncover pot and allow it to cook down. 
6. Serve with fresh french bread or favorite cracker.

Finely chopped peppers and onions and the chili paste 

Chili reduced about an inch over 2 hours

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Makes approximately 2 dozen large cookies

When I went shopping for the Cranberry Hootycreek Cookie ingredients, my only option for the rolled oats was a 2 lb package.  Since those cookies only call for 1 cup - I had a lot of oats left over so I decided to make oatmeal raisin cookies.  

Ingredients:

3/4 cup butter, softened 

3/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 3/4 cups rolled oats

1 cup raisins

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. In large bowl, cream together butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until fluffy. Stir together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually beat into butter mixture. Stir in oats and raisins. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown. Cool slightly, remove from sheet to wire rack. Cool completely.

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Cranberry Hootycreek Cookies

Cranberry Hootycreek Cookies (makes approximately 3 dozen)

These cookies are super easy to make and surprisingly addictive, I have to eat at least 2 at a time.  They also make an awesome gift - you probably have seen them all over Pinterest - the 'Cookie in a Jar'.  You would just layer all the dry ingredients in a jar, add a label and note to add to the butter and eggs with the baking instructions.

Ingredients:

2 ¼ Cups all purpose flour

1 Teaspoon baking soda

1 Teaspoon salt

1 Cups softened butter

2/3 Cups brown sugar

2/3 Cups white sugar

2 Eggs

2 Teaspoons vanilla extract

1 Cup rolled oats

1 Cups white chocolate chips

1 Cup dried cranberries

1 Cup chopped walnuts

*Realized salt wasn't in the picture until once the cookies were already in the oven*

1. Preheat oven to 350°

2. Combine flour, baking soda and salt into a mixing bow

3. In separate bowl cream butter then add brown and white sugars, eggs & vanilla extract

4. Add to flour mixture then add in oats, cranberries, chocolate chips and nuts

5. Drop spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet

6. Bake at 350° for 8-12 minutes or until edges are brown. 

Welcome!

First of all welcome to Weekend Martha, I'm excited to share DIY projects I've always wanted to try, recipes I always wanted to share and document everything along the way.  Most projects will be done on the weekend as I work 40+ hours a week and don't have all the time I wish to dedicate to this blog.

My boyfriend, Tim,  and I of almost 5 years just moved in together and now I can finally start trying out differently recipes I have been accumulating over the past couple years.  It was never fun to make a new dish for 1 serving, then have to eat it for lunch the next day and for dinner because there were so many left overs.

I've always wanted to be Martha Stewart (minus the whole jail situation) since I was young and my mom did her hair for one of the Martha Stewart Living magazine covers (see below).

Martha's Westport, CT house was right down the street from my Mom's old salon and to me it was like I knew a celebrity...kind of - okay not really but let's put things into perspective - I was 10 years old.

February 1999 Martha Stewart Living Cover

In November 2011, I moved out of my Mom's house and got my own apartment, that Christmas I thought 'no problem I can get everyone exactly what's on their list' and I was right, I could get everything - but was also left with a hefty credit card bill I had to pay off.  So last Christmas I decided to do things a little different, after spending countless hours on Pinterest I found so many great ideas for gifts and am planning on doing the same thing this year.  Its so much better watching friends and family open gifts you put thought and time into rather than something they're expecting to get.

A few items I made last year were Reinbeer, Reese's Pieces Thanksgiving Turkeys, Monogrammed Coasters, Picture Coasters, and Woven Newspaper Basket.  I don't have step by step instructions for each one yet but please feel free to ask if you're interested in trying them.