As you might remember I participate in a fabulous program called the “Foodie Penpal” program put together by the lovely Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean.  After you sign up {here}, you are randomly matched up with someone to send a package to and another person that will send you a package!  After contacting your person, you put together $15 worth of food yummies {can be anything from local classics, to favorite snacks, to homemade goodies}, package it all up and send it their way!  Then for the bloggers in the world, on the 1st of each month you post about your packages {both the package you received and the package you put together}.  What a fun way to connect with other foodies across the country!

My foodie penpal this month was Allison.  Even while dealing with the yucky flu she put together a fabulous box of goodies to send my way.  The first thing to get snatched up was a bag of gluten free pasta {snatched up so fast in fact…i forgot to take a picture of it!}  We eat a LOT of gluten free pasta in my house so this one totally hit the spot.  She also included a can of Wolfgang soup, {which is the perfect on the go healthy ORGANIC meal}  some delicious gluten free crackers and a yummy fruit bar.  Huge thanks to Allison for such a great Foodie box.  Can’t wait for next month’s match-up!!

This month I was paired up with the lovely Elizabeth from The Law Student’s Cookbook.  be sure to check out her blog for fabulous recipes and meal ideas!!

Happy Eating!
~ Jillian

There is nothing more satisfying then a nice warm bowl of chili on a cold day.  I do make a mean bowl of “Monroe’s semi-sissy chili” but that’s a recipe for another day!!  Today’s warming bowl of loveliness has a bit of a mexican twist to it.  Its healthy {really just good for you chicken and beans}, easy and inexpensive to make!!  Its a win…win…win!  I tend to just throw stuff randomly in the crock-pot and hope for the best, and usually something yummy comes out.  This one did NOT disappoint.  It’s super simple ingredients that come together for something that is satisfying and sticks with you.  You might be shocked here…but i added a bit of greek yogurt in the end to thicken it all up and balance out the spicy flavors.  Enjoy!

Spicy Chicken Chili

Ingredients

• 1 package organic chicken breasts
• 1 can chick peas
• 1 can red kidney beans
• water or broth
• 1 package Frontera skillet sauce {I used the classic Fajita}
• cayenne pepper {to taste}
• garlic powder {to taste}
• greek yogurt

Directions

• Place chicken breasts at the bottom of the crockpot, cover with skillet sauce {add a splash of water if the chicken isn’t covered}.  Cook on high for 2 hours or until chicken can be shredded.
• Add cans of beans, additional seasoning {if desired} and enough water/broth to cover beans and chicken.  Cook an additional 2 hours.
• Stir in a full scoop of greek yogurt, until you reach desired consistency {we were going for thick chili/stew like so i kept it nice and thick}
• Serve with additional greek yogurt and cilantro, maybe even a squeeze of lime.

* Cooking times vary.  Beans can be added earlier if desired {just makes shredding the chicken a bit more challenging}  Substitute your favorite beans, vegetables, etc to customize this!

Yumm-o!
~ Jillian