Last Wednesday, my husband and I moved 50 baby chicks from the house to the barn. They were five weeks old and far too large and smelly to stay in my house. We split them between two 110-gallon troughs with food, water, heat and netting on the top to keep them in. The move was stressful for David, me and the chicks. Luckily for me, it was Ben’s night to make dinner.

Meatballs and Mushroom Gravy
1.5 lbs. lean ground meat
10 saltine crackers, crushed
2 eggs
2 Tbsp. Worchestershire Sauce
1 Tbsp. A-1 Steak Sauce
1 tsp. each salt and pepper
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 can milk
1/2 c. sliced black olives

In a large bowl mix ingredients beginning with ground meat through salt and pepper. Form about 20 small balls. Cook the meatballs in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Ben said he added a little oil to the pan to keep the meat from sticking. When browned on all sides, remove the meatballs from the pan and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.

Pour the mushroom soup and milk into the pan and whisk until blended. Add the meatballs and black olives to the pan, cover, reduce heat to low and cook for about 20 minutes. Make pasta or rice to serve with the meatballs and sauce.

We all enjoyed the dinner. Since I’m still watching what I eat and slowly adding back healthy carbs, I had about a half cup of noodles and two meatballs.

Saturday we framed the walls that will enlarge our existing coop. Soon those 50 chicks will need somewhere to go. I helped by cutting 2x4s to the required lengths, giving my opinion and most importantly, providing what David calls the “Jesse James.” That is, I “hold it up” while David nails it.

Sunday morning I started a slow cooker chili recipe inspired by an article in an old Southern Living. I am always looking for new recipes that fit my diet. I followed that recipe fairly closely, but recommend a few changes – see comments in parenthesis.

Smoky Turkey and Sweet Potato Chili
1.5 lbs. ground turkey
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 cup Mexican beer (or chicken stock)
1 cup dried pinto beans
1-1/2 Tbsp. chopped chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
1 Tbsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1/2 tsp. freshly cracked black pepper
2 bell peppers, coarsely chopped
8 ozs. dried lima beans
1 large onion, chopped
5 cups unsalted chicken stock (I added a mix of V-8 juice and stock, plus more stock when needed)
2-1/2 c. sweet potatoes, cubed

In a large skillet, cook turkey with salt and pepper in oil over medium-high heat. Don’t worry if it sticks, but keep cooking until you actually see it sear brown in places. Transfer meat to a slow cooker.

Add tomato paste to the skillet and cook for about 30 seconds. Then add the beer bringing it to a boil while stirring to loosen the bits from the bottom of the pan. (Perhaps because it was so early in the morning, I chose to substitute the beer with chicken stock.) After about 3 minutes, add the contents to the slow cooker.

Except for the sweet potatoes, add the remaining ingredients to the slow cooker. Cook on high for 7 hours. (I checked the liquid twice during that time and added a cup of stock each time.) Then stir in sweet potatoes and cook 1 hour more until potatoes are tender.

Serve garnished with a dollop of yogurt or sour cream, chopped cilantro, green onions, radish slices and jalapeños. The chipotle peppers in that recipe really added heat and may be skipped. The smoky paprika provides enough kick on its own if milder chili is preferred.