White bean chicken chili with kale

White Bean and Chicken Chili

Adapted from a Giada De Laurentiis recipe on the Food Network

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons ground cumin

1 tablespoon fennel seeds

1 tablespoon dried oregano

2 teaspoons chili powder

¼ teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes

2 pounds ground chicken (or turkey, pork or Italian sausage)

3 tablespoons flour

2 cans (15-ounce) cannellini beans

2 large handfuls chopped kale

1½ cups thawed frozen corn

4 cups broth

Method

In large saucepan or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium low heat. Add onions. Season with salt and pepper (pace yourself; we’ll add more salt later) and brown until soft. Add garlic, cumin, fennel, oregano, chili and red pepper. Cook for 1 minute to sweat the spices.

Push onion to sides of pan. Increase heat to medium. Add ground meat. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until no longer pink.

Stir in flour. Cook a minute or two until no longer floury. Stir in broth, beans, corn and kale. Season with salt. Bring mixture to a simmer. Cover and cook for 1 hour. Season to taste with salt and pepper as needed.

Rating: Nice; even better a second day after the flavors had time to meld. Initially I had given the slight edge to this similar recipe, but the second-day rating is they're both just fine ways to use up a wretched excess of kale.