Pioneer Woman's White Chili

I spied this recipe on the Pioneer Woman website a couple of days ago, and it looked really, really good. I mean really good. It must be a pregnancy craving type of thing, because I rearranged my menu plan several times to accommodate this chili. The ingredients are fairly simple, but it just looks like it will hit the spot. There is even some dairy in this dish, so I am willing to endure discomfort (with the help of my anti-nausea medication) to try this out. I know...the sacrifices I make for yummy food!!!
Anyway, I don't have exactly everything on hand that is listed in the ingredients; but I am hoping to make a couple of simple substitutions to get a pretty close facsimile of PW's end result. I am going to serve my white chili with a simple romaine side salad and hope that this recipe turns out as good as it looks.

Here is the link to her original recipe. She photographs and explains each step, so why reinvent the wheel??? I will list my substitutions below, as well.

Pioneer Woman's White Chili

Since we are not feeding an army of hungry country folk, but just a mere 3 people (with some leftovers for lunches), I need to decrease the quantities used in this recipe to suit our family.

Okay, here is what I am doing differently:

* I am going to boil just 2 good-sized boneless, skinless chicken breasts in some homemade chicken stock instead of the whole cut up chicken. Then, I will let it cool and then shred it. Why chicken breasts? Well, that is what I have to work with. I know on-the-bone white and dark meat would yield a better result; but hey, I am not going make an extra trip to the store.

*Next, I forgot to buy dried Great Northern beans at the store. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find a long-ago purchased can in the back of my pantry. I will use that can with another can of white Cannellini beans to fortify this dish. As always with canned beans, I rinse and drain the can liquid off of them before using (it is just way too salty).

*Lastly, as I mentioned before, I need to decrease ingredients quantities. So, I will pretty much taste as I go to get the correct balance with seasonings. I am not sure how much liquid I will use either; so I guess I will play that by ear, too. Luckily, chili is usually pretty forgiving so I am confident the final outcome will be close to the intended version of this recipe.

Wish me luck!



The Result:
This was fantastically delicious! It was sooooooo freakin' yummy! We all absolutely loved it. Even with my shortcuts, this turned out awesome. I am actually jealous that the husband is taking the leftovers to work for his lunch tomorrow. I can't even think of one critical point about this dish. It was great as-is. We topped our chili with some chopped cilantro, a dollop of sour cream, and some Jack cheese. Yum! It didn't need anything else!!! Also, I wouldn't hesitate to use canned beans and just the chicken breasts again. It was just the right quantity for us and it shaved some cooking time off, since the beans were already 'cooked'. I think the whole dish-including some time to simmer-took about an hour to put together. This is a total keeper! PW rocks!!!