A creamy chicken apple cheddar chili filled with white beans and lots of cheddar. A bit non-traditional but perfect for fall!
It’s kind of funny timing that I’m sharing this recipe with you guys now. Five years ago when we moved back to NY from Florida, we moved into my in-laws’ house. They lived down in Florida and their house up here was empty so it was kind of perfect after we had just taken a huge hit selling our Florida home while the real estate market was literally nose-diving on a daily basis.
Their house in NY was already furnished and we somehow managed to move all our furniture from our 4-bedroom home into that house too. Needless to say, it was packed to the gills and we basically lived in the 2 rooms we were able to keep clear of boxes and excess furniture.
I think I mentally blocked out a lot of the year we lived there because I really struggled with how to find comfort in the temporariness of the whole situation. Work was crazy that year as I was responsible for double the client load of my peers, we had just opened a new office and after working at home for 2 years in Florida, I now had a normal work commute like the rest of the world.
I was stressed, constantly scouring realtor.com and trying to convince Ulysses to prematurely jump back into buying a house and perpetually obsessing about what was “next” for us.
The one and only thing I remember bringing contentment to my neurotic self at the time was cooking.
I had a Rachael Ray magazine subscription and I’m pretty sure I made about 75% of the recipes in each issue. It must’ve been the September issue that I found this recipe for white chicken chili with apples. I made it at least 10 times that fall and winter, it became my go to “warm & cozy” meal for the season.
We bought this house the following spring and for 4 years I forgot about it.
Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago right after we found out we would be selling this house and inevitably moving in with my parents for a bit until we figure out the next step and this cheddar chicken chili comes popping back into my head.
I think it needs to be renamed “sanity from temporary housing woes chili” or something to the effect.
Hopefully I’ll be able to enjoy the moment a bit more this time around than last and not drive myself as nuts as I did in 2008 but if not, at least there will be a few good meals to be had this winter, this chicken apple cheddar chili included.
I’m pretty sure my parents won’t mind that.
Need a cozy fall side to go with this chicken apple chili? Try these pumpkin scones. They’re great paired with this chili or pumpkin chili!
More chili recipes to check out:
Kabocha Squash Chili
Turkey Chili Pie
Spicy Hummus Turkey Chili
Vegetable Barley Chili
Spicy Porter Short Rib Chili
Chicken Apple Cheddar Chili
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, cut into cubes
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- salt & pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 2 apples, chopped
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoons flour, use gluten-free if needed
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup milk
- 7 ounces canned green chiles
- 14 ounces canned cannelini beans, rinsed & drained
- 14 ounces canned chick peas, rinsed & drained
- 1 cup shredded white cheddar cheese
- scallions for garnish
- sour cream or greek yogurt for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat.
- Add the chicken, salt, pepper, chili powder and cumin and stir together.
- Cook until chicken is browned on all sides and then transfer to a bowl.
- Add the apples and onion to the dutch oven and saute in the chicken drippings until softened, about 5-7 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the chicken.
- Add the butter to the pot. Once melted, add the flour and whisk together, cooking for about 30 seconds.
- Add the chicken broth and milk and whisk constantly until the mixture thickens, about 3 minutes.
- Once thickened, add the chicken, apples and onions from the bowl to the pot.
- Add the beans and the chiles, stir to combine everything and let heat through, about 2 minutes.
- Add the cheddar last, stir until it melts.
- Garnish with scallions and/or sour cream or greek yogurt.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
The calorie count seems wrong. Or is it just me? Sorry, I’m tracking calories.
Hi Cj- Sometimes the calorie count software gets screwy. This was one of those times. It’s been edited and should be accurate now. If you’re counting calories, however, I’d never rely on this data as absolute fact, you should plug the ingredients into your own tracking software of some kind as you cook – such as MyFitnessPal or something similar depending on how strictly you are tracking. These recipe card calculators are just estimates and can often be inaccurate.
How many servings does this recipe make? Thank you!
It serves about 4. Says it in the top left of the recipe card area.
I’m so glad I found this recipe. I am going to make it with the leftover turkey that I know I will have after Thanksgiving It sounds delicious and I gave everything on hand :)
This looks delicious, hopefully this will go over well with my kids. Never in a million years did I think of adding apples to my chili. EVER. P.S, we are about to move too! I hope this gives me as much comfort as it did to you. :)
And I hope your move is smooth!
I love everything about this – what great flavors and the perfect “lighter” way to ease into chili season!
I made this today for football Sunday for my fiancĂ© and I and it was wonderful! He is more of a chili traditionalist and I think was a little skeptical at first, but was open to it, especially with many apples leftover from our apple picking excursion a few weeks back. We enjoyed it over some broken up tortilla chips and topped with a bit of sour cream. I wound up adding a little cayenne pepper at the end as I like my chili on the spicier side. Thank you for the recipe, I’ll definitely be making this again.