Pumpkin Beer Chili

It's October.  The temperatures are cooling and football is in full swing.  That means chili season, pumpkin season and beer season.  Well, it's kind of always beer season for us, but now that I've discovered the excellent flavor enhancing skills of beer when added to chili, beer and chili go together in a whole new way in my kitchen.  So I completely devoured this chili made with a mix of turkey, pepper and onions, tomatoes, pumpkin and lots of seasoning, as well as a nice, healthy serving of beer.  This is a perfect chili for October--oodles of flavor, hearty and filling for cool fall evenings, and a savory pumpkin base.  Yet another chili for our rotation, and that's just fine with me.

Every month, my Food Network Magazine arrives and has a cute little booklet of 50 things to make with a common theme or ingredient.  The October issue was no different, offering me 50 Things to Make with Canned Pumpkin.  While I generally have no problem finding something to do with a can of pumpkin, I flipped through (with Dave looking over my shoulder) and was intrigued by this chili.  It didn't call for the beer, I made that substitution on my own, using a bottle of Sam Adams Boston Lager we had kicking around and supplementing with some water.  Now that we have Harpoon UFO Pumpkin on tap, I'll be making this again soon.  The recipe did call for adobo sauce, which is not something I generally have, so I swapped it with some tomato paste (for texture) and added a extra hot pepper (for flavor).  A easy dish, I whipped this up after work one night, topped it with cheese and sour cream, and paired it with beer bread.  In about 45 minutes, we had a hearty and delicious dinner, perfect for the prime time game.

Pumpkin Beer Chili

Ingredients

1 medium onion
1 bell pepper
1 hot pepper
20 ounce ground turkey
15 ounces pure pumpkin puree
15 ounces diced tomatoes
15 ounce black beans, drained and rinsed
12 ounces beer (not shown)
4 ounces water (not shown)
2 Tablespoons chili powder
2 Tablespoons tomato paste

Dice onion and peppers.  Add to a large pot with turkey and brown over medium heat.  Drain off excess oil and water.

Stir in pumpkin, tomatoes and drained beans.  Then add beer and water and stir to combine, scraping any remnants from the bottom of the pot.

Add in chili powder and tomato paste.

Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

Ladle into bowls and top with desired toppings, such as sour cream, cheese, scallions, etc.

Makes 6 servings.

Happy Baking,
The Cookie Princess

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