In Honor of Fall

White Bean Chicken Chili

(There are a thousand versions of this dish out there, and I've probably made about a dozen of them. I am happy to present here, however, the version that I have enjoyed most of all. I got the basic recipe from allrecipes.com, then snazzed it up with a few more ingredients and spices.)

1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp cooking oil
1 lb diced chicken (cooked or uncooked)
2 cans chicken broth
1 can northern beans, not drained
1 can garbanzo beans (aka chick peas), drained
1 can corn, drained
1 7oz can green chiles, not drained
1 tsp whole cumin, toasted for a few minutes then ground (or 1 tsp ground if that's all you have)
1/2 tsp coriander (same here, whole/toasted/ground is better, but ground is fine)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
sour cream and shredded jack cheese for garnish

1. In a large saucepan, saute onion and garlic in oil. If chicken is uncooked, saute that as well. Cook until onions are translucent and chicken is opaque.

2. Dump in the broth, chicken (if using already cooked chicken), beans, corn, green chiles, spices, salt and pepper. Heat to boiling.

3. Cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes. Serve with sour cream and shredded cheese. Also those Jiffy brand corn muffins are like 89 cents at the grocery store - PERFECT as a compliment, and you can make them up while the chili is simmering.