Some Like it "Hot" Some like it "Cold"

I don't know about you but I love the cold weather. A couple weeks ago here in Southern CA we were blessed with some amazing days of cold and wet weather. This is such a treat for us very spoiled CA dwellers as we have mostly sunshine and warm weather year round. I can not get enough of these cold rainy days. I have always told my husband I could live in the rain every day. 

This amazing weather prompted me to want to enjoy in some much needed hearty chili.

Of course standing in the rain for three hours selling Girl Scout cookies further fueled this fire. 

Lets take a moment to talk about these said cookie sales. As this was my first year with my daughter in Girl Scouts, I did not know what to expect, boy were we in for a ride.

It first starts off with the girls setting a goal of how many cookies they would like to sell. Of course the girls mostly base this off the prize sheet they are given. My daughter chose to try to sell 500 boxes as it would earn her a set of roller skates, her new found love. 

So we set off on our journey, personal sales plus booths.

Personal sales went great, except for one walk about, mommy and daddy helped with the majority of the sales. Now lets talk about the these booths. They are set up to teach the girls great business skills and to be independent. Yes I think they teach the kids both of these but, our booths happened to land on all the cold rainy days and nights. My daughter and I did 4 booths and by the end of that we were both over them. At the end of our last booth we were both crying lol.  We were both cold, tired and wet.  I think it taught my daughter to stick it out even when it gets tough but I was also sad for her to stand in the cold rain. My husband helped by picking up my daughter and taking her to a movie while I relaxed with friends for the rest of the evening. Then I planned a nice warm meal to heat our souls. 

In the end she sold 380 boxes total, still a great accomplishment, but not her goal.  She earned a lot of very cool prizes and mommy and daddy will be surprising her with new skates for all of her hard work. Cookie sales may have not been our strong point but I did love what it taught her. Girl Scouts is a wonderful organization teaching our girls great morals and preparing them for the future, hopefully next year we will get the rainy weather on the days we want to cuddle and watch a movie instead of selling lol. 

With all of that being said I encourage all the mothers out there to teach your girls to be independent, be strong and love themselves for their accomplishments. Even if they don't reach there "Goal" they can always set new ones and keep trying.  This is the greatest lesson my Mother taught me in life. It is amazing to have a partner walk beside you but please know how to stand on your own. 

So the next time you find yourself cold, tired and wet try cuddling up with a good movie and some hot chili. 

Hearty Chili

You will need a crock pot and a skillet for this meal. 

Serves 6-8 

Prep time is 30 mins

Cook time 3 to 6 hours depending on your preference see recipe

NOTE: My kids like spicy food if you do not want it to be so spicy please eliminate the chipotle peppers in adobe sauce. This will take the smoke flavor out but still good

Ingredients:

2lbs turkey meat

1 medium onion diced

4 cloves of garlic minced

1 28oz can of crushed tomatoes

2 14oz cans of diced tomatoes with chili's

2 15oz cans of dark kidney beans drained and rinsed 

2 15oz cans of light kidney beans drained and rinsed

1 tbs of cumin

2 tbs of chili powder 

1 tsp salt

1 7oz can green chilis

1 7oz can chipotle peppers in adobe sauce 

1 cup dark beer

1 tbs of olive oil

1 cup of cheddar cheese

1 cup sour cream

Instructions:

In a large skillet brown turkey meat with tbs of olive oil. Once browned add garlic and onion

In a crock pot add the browned turkey meat, garlic and onion.

Next add the crushed tomatoes and diced tomatoes with chilis.

Then add cumin, chili powder and salt

Mix through

Add can of green chilis and chipotle peppers in adobe sauce

Mix through

Then add the light and dark kidney beans and mix through

Last add 1 cup of your favorite dark beer and mix through.

Let cook for at least 3 hours on high or 6 hours on low. 

Top with cheddar cheese and sour cream or any of your favorite chili toppings and dig in.