Winter Blogfest: Maggie King

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a print copy of MURDER BY THE GLASS: COCKTAIL MYSTERIES, an anthology of cocktail-themed mysteries. US only.

Turkey Chili: A New Year’s Day Tradition

Black-eyed peas are a favorite New Year’s Day tradition for millions who believe eating the legume will lead to prosperity in the coming year. I haven’t heard that chili has the same mystical power to bring good luck, but, as I have yet to develop a taste for black-eyed peas, I’ll call chili my good luck charm.

Chili was a New Year’s Day tradition in my childhood home—a huge pot of it. I hated the stuff, hated the aroma of it as it simmered on the stove and lingered in the air for hours.

But I’m all grown up now and chili is one of my favorite dishes. The sweet, pungent aroma that fills my house each year on January 1 gives me great pleasure. Yes, chili remains a New Year’s Day tradition for my family—but with my own recipe: turkey chili with black beans.

This recipe is perfect for cold winter evenings, although I fix it year round. Feel free to vary the ingredients according to your taste and what you have on hand. I prefer turkey, but have used ground beef and bison. The multi-colored peppers create a pretty dish, but you can certainly use one color. In lieu of tarragon vinegar(who has that on hand?), I add a pinch of dried tarragon to ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar.

The recipe is courtesy of the Gourmet Gazelle Cookbook by Ellen Brown. It never disappoints.

1 tbsp. vegetable oil

1 onion, peeled and chopped

3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

1 red bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed, diced

1 green bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed, diced

1 ½ pounds turkey breast, coarsely ground

2 tbsp. flour

3 tbsp. chili powder

2 tbsp. ground cumin

2 tsp. powdered cocoa

1-2 tsp. cayenne pepper

¼ cup tarragon vinegar

2 tbsp. strong brewed coffee

1 28 oz. cans plum tomatoes, crushed

¼ tsp. salt

2 cups cooked black beans

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a Dutch oven or deep skillet. Add onion, garlic, and bell peppers; sauté, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes. Add the ground turkey and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring constantly and breaking up any lumps with the spoon.  

Stir in the flour, chili powder, cumin, and cocoa. Stir frequently over low heat for 3 minutes to cook the spices. Add remaining ingredients except black beans and bring to a boil over medium heat.

Simmer chili, stirring occasionally, for 40-45 minutes until thick and the turkey is tender (If using slow cooker, cook on low for 4 hours). Add black beans and cook for 5 additional minutes.

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Do you celebrate New Year’s with a special dish? Tell us about it in the comments.

May 2022 be a happy and prosperous year for you—whatever you eat on Day 1!

He who laughs last, laughs longest.

Unless he’s dead.

When romance author Hazel Rose is dropped by her publisher, she sees herself
heading down a path strewn with has-been authors. While disappointed, Hazel won’t give up without a fight—she signs up for a mystery-writing class, thinking that crime fiction will jumpstart her career.

But what’s a mystery-writing class without a mystery? So when Randy Zimmerman, an obnoxious classmate given to laughing at others’ expense, is murdered, Hazel tackles the case. Solving a real-life murder will surely lend authenticity to her creative writing.

She recruits her book group pals to help with the investigation. Trouble is, there are more suspects than they bargained for—even Hazel herself, who endured Randy’s thumbs-way-down review of her writing, had a motive.

A second body drives the stakes higher, and Hazel doubles her efforts to find who’s behind the murders, unearthing secrets that a killer would go to any lengths to keep hidden.

Will Hazel succeed? Or will this be “The End” for her?

Maggie King is the author of the Hazel Rose Book Group mysteries. Her short stories appear in various anthologies, including the Virginia is for Mysteries series, 50 Shades of Cabernet, Deadly Southern Charm, Murder by the Glass, and Death by Cupcake.

She is a member of James River Writers, International Thriller Writers, Short Mystery Fiction Society, and is a founding member of Sisters in Crime Central Virginia, where she manages the chapter’s Instagram account.

Maggie graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology with a degree in Business Administration, and has worked as a software developer and a retail sales manager. She has called New Jersey, Massachusetts, and California home. These days she lives in Richmond, Virginia, with her husband and two indulged cats. When Maggie isn’t writing she enjoys reading, walking, cooking, traveling, movies, British TV shows, and the theatre.

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