So I have this very funny friend who've I know since we were in middle school who has recently become obsessed with the beverage Skinny Girl Margarita. She keeps a hilarious blog that you just have to check out, The Mommy and The Skinny Girl (http://themommyandtheskinnygirl.blogspot.com) but please make sure you read the lessons in order. Anyway, she has been asking her friends to try this drink for awhile now but some of us have had problems finding the stuff where we live. At least that was the problem I ran into recently. It appears that here in NC, we haven't received a shipment of Skinny Girl Margarita in over a month and the ABC store couldn't tell me when we would have any. Thank goodness for Page and her "rockstar" because she had a bottle shipped to me so I could finally taste the glory of the skinny girl for myself. Now, I'm not exactly a big fan of margaritas or of tequila for that matter but one sip of the Skinny Girl and I may have become a margarita convert. The beauty of this beverage is that it is indeed a low calorie adult drink but with no fake additives. It is made with premium tequila and sweetened with agave nectar instead of fake sugar. There is none of the phony bologna fake after taste that you get with most low cal/diet drinks. It is a smooth and delicious adult treat. I highly recommend checking with your local store to see if you can get Skinny Girl in your area. It is worth the trouble for sure.
Now my dilemma last night was trying to come up with a dinner that would be perfectly tasty with the Skinny Girl. I thought, well if I'm trying to be calorie conscious with my beverage, I should probably try and come up with something equally healthy for dinner. You see recently, I have been trying to get into shape for a trip to Vegas I'm taking in June. It's difficult to do when you one hobby is cooking and baking. As many of you well know, I love my sugar and my butter, two no no's when your trying to lose weight. So I turned to my tried and true favorite site (foodgawker) and stumbled across a recipe for chili mac & cheese. I made a few changes like switching out the ground beef for 93% lean ground turkey and it was so yummy. I know when a recipe has been a true success when my 5yr old goes back for more. This casserole was a perfect accompaniment for the Skinny Girl Margarita and it was both budget and kid friendly.
Turkey Chili Mac
adapted from What's Cooking Chicago
Table salt
1/2 pound elbow macaroni (about 2 cups uncooked pasta)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey (93% lean)
2 medium onions, chopped
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
12 oz Colby Jack cheese, shredded (about 2 1/2 cups)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Bring 4 quarts water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Stir in 1 tablespoon salt and add dry macaroni; cook until al dente. Reserve 3/4 cup pasta water and drain pasta. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
Using the same large pot, wipe dry and heat over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil and heat until shimmering. Add ground turkey and break it up in pieces to brown. Once browned, remove from pot and discard drippings. Set beef aside.
Add remaining oil to the same large pot and return to medium heat until shimmering. Add onions, garlic, red pepper, chili powder, and cumin; cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and begin to brown.
Add the crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, brown sugar, reserved 3/4 cup pasta water and turkey to the pot. Bring to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until flavors have blended.
Stir in the cooked pasta, 1/2 cup of shredded cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer mixture to a 9x13 baking dish and smooth over with a spatula. Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until the mixture is hot and bubbling.
Remove from oven and sprinkle the top of the dish with the remaining shredded cheese. Return the dish once again in the oven and bake for 5-10 minutes until the cheese begins to melt and brown. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.
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