Three Bean Turkey Chili

Here is a football cuisine classic in honor of the first day of Hokie Season! This is a staple for a truly successful tailgate and really gets you in the spirit. Recipe is by Valerie Bertinelli and can be found on the food network website. I made a couple tweaks such as I used 1 lb of turkey instead of 2 lbs, and I left out the green chilis. Recipe and recipe notes are below. Go Hokies!

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 lb. ground turkey (but you can use as Valerie has in her recipe)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped
• 1 large white onion, chopped
• 3 tbsp. chili powder
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
• One 28-ounce canned diced tomatoes
• 15 ounce can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
• 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 15 ounce can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup of shredded cheddar (no pre-grated! much fresher when you shred it yourself)
• 1 cup of sliced scallion
• *1 cup of sour cream for topping (I'm not a sour cream fan but if you are, Valerie suggests this!)
• *One 4-ounce can of diced green chilis (I usually leave this out but I'm sure it would give it a nice kick)

Instructions:

1. Heat up the olive oil in a dutch oven or very large pot on medium-high heat. Throw in the turkey, pepper and 1 teaspoon of salt. Use a spoon to break up any large clumps, cook all the way through until browned and then remove from the pot, set aside. 
2. Using the same pot you used for the turkey, cook the garlic, onion and celery until the vegetables begin to soften. Mix in the tomato paste and chili powder until the onion and celery are all coated in paste/powder.
3. Pour in the diced tomatoes, pinto beans, black beans, kidney beans, broth and return the cooked turkey to the pot. Bring it to a simmer or gentle boil on medium-high heat, and then turn the temperature down to lowest heat level. Let it cook for 30 minutes until veggies have softened and flavors have had time to combine. Serve with cheddar cheese, scallions and sour cream.