Soooo yummy on a cold day!
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You will need:
- Electric Crockpot (slow cooker)
- Skillet
- Olive Oil
- Small Onion, 3 cloves of Garlic and 5-6 Celery stalks
- Additional Seasonings (no-salt garlic & herb spice blend, parsley & basil)
- 1 pkg. of McCormick (brand) Slow Cooker White Bean Chicken Chili powdered mix
- Purdue Grilled Chicken Strips (check the “meat” section in the frozen aisles of the grocery store). This shortcut makes this recipe easy!
- Apx. 40 ozs of Chicken Stock (I always look for natural, lower sodium brands & sometimes use 1 container of unsalted & 1 of low sodium)
- 3-4 different types of white canned beans (or feel free to make the bagged versions)
Note: I use Cannellini, Navy, Great Northern and White Acre Peas (look for these bean-like peas in the Vegetable section of your grocery store. The fiber in them is HUGE, so adding them will make this heart healthy).
Directions:
Place apx. 32 ounces of chicken stock (this will probably be one container) and the powdered McCormick Chili mix into the crock pot and turn temperature to High. 
While that begins to warm, chop the onion, garlic and celery.
Place apx. 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil into a large skillet. Add the chopped onion, garlic & celery as well as 2-3 tablespoons of no-salt garlic & herb spice blend. Simmer (on low) until onion is clear (apx. 25-30 minutes). Put a lid on to help the celery tenderize faster.
While the vegetables are simmering, open all of the cans of beans and peas. Rinse each can of beans in a strainer/colander (to remove the excess salt) and then, add them to the chicken stock, already in the crock pot. Add as many beans as you like, but at least 4 cans.
Add the entire bag of frozen chicken strips to the skillet and put the lid back on the skillet as well as 1 cup of chicken stock.
In apx. 15-20 minutes, the chicken should be thawed enough to break it up into small, bite-size pieces, using a wooden spatula.
Stir well and replace lid to allow the vegetables & chicken pieces to complete blending. After simmering for apx. 10 more minutes, remove the lid and add skillet contents to the crock pot. Add 1 tablespoon of parsley and 1 tablespoon of basil (add basil & parsley to your hand first and rub both hands together over the crock pot to break up the flavor while adding it). Place the lid on the crock pot and turn it down to low for at least 3 hours. Add more chicken stock if needed (strictly up to you & how thick OR thin you want your broth to be). I also love to add torn pieces of fresh spinach, so try that to make it even healthier!
Toppings to consider when serving: a tablespoon of either shredded cheddar, chopped onions or scallions, sour cream or ranch or blue cheese salad dressing. Also, croutons; consider lightly coating them in olive oil and adding them to the skillet or oven for toasting. Cool before adding them to the bowl of chili.
Bon Apetit!
Eileen
