What have you been cooking lately?

Don't worry, no oppossum or squirrel adventures! But I did have another "odd" item boiling on my stove this past week. What is that you ask? Well, hemp inserts of course! (sorry my baby posts are intermingling over here) Along with it's other many "uses", hemp is supposedly one of the most absorbant materials there available. So on my shopping outing with my mother, we got to stop by Happybottomus, a natural parenting store. I stocked up on a few diapering essentials, hemp inserts being one of them. I've heard that hemp has a lot of natural oils. If it would be washed with any other diapers, the oils would stick to them cause them to repel = make them useless. So, I spent last night boiling my inserts with some dish soap. How's that for a fun exciting evening!
On another cooking note, I clipped a recipe out of the KC star Sunday Food section and made it tonight. Chicken and Poblano Pepper Chili. It was fabulous (but spicy....but probably b/c my hubby added Cayenne and Chipotle Pepper powder. The spice could definitely be toned down for those of you who burn their mouth on Big Red Gum (you shall remain nameless).
here is the recipe (as I made it...which was almost like the directions said to make it..I don't like to use chicken thighs). This makes 4-6 servings.
2 T. Olive Oil
1 Large Onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 t. salt, more to taste
1/4 t. ground black pepper
1.5 t. dried oregano
1 T ground cumin
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
1/2 t. aniseed ( I couldn't find any, so I didn't use it)
1/2 t. dried crushed red peper
recipe says 1/2 lb chicken breast, 1/2 lb chicken thigh...I used 3 chicken breast, cut in small chunks
3 (14.5oz) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed, set 1 cup aside
1.5 c. chicken broth
3 Poblano chilies, roasted, peeled, and seeded...then diced
1/4 c. heavy cream
(for garnish, you can use green onions, cilantro, cheese, or nothing, like I used)

Directions: Heat oil in large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and al spices. Saute until onion is softened...about 5 mins. Remove onions and set aside. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to pot. Saute until mostly cooked and all sides are white. Add onions back to pot and stir. In a blender, mix 1 cup of beans and 1/2 c. chicken broth. Puree until smooth. Pour into pot along with remaining broth, whole beans, chilies, and cream. Simmer 20 mins on low until chicken is tender. Season to taste (if you want, I didn't).

Wa-la.
Of course any Mexican tasting meal isn't complete without chips, salsa, and guacamole!

What have you ladies been up to lately!