Easy Lean Chili Mac
An easy to make delicious, hearty, and macro friendly lean chili mac that can most definitely please a crowd.
Servings: 10
Calories: 366kcal
Ingredients
- 3 cups white onion diced (340 g-- I love to use the 12 oz bag of frozen diced onion!)
- 2 cups zucchini finely chopped (490 g)*
- 2 cups red bell pepper finely chopped (400 g)
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 ½ lb 93/7 lean ground turkey** 700 g
- 2- 3 Tbsp chili powder depending on heat preference
- 2 Tbsp ground cumin
- 1 Tbsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 7 cloves garlic minced or frozen Dorot cubes
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste 30 g
- 1 Tbsp liquid smoke 15 g- optional
- 1 15- oz can tomato sauce 425 g - or jarred marinara
- 1 7- oz can of mild diced green chilis undrained (198 g)
- 1 10- oz can mild green enchilada sauce 283 g
- 1 10- oz cans of rotel undrained (or canned diced tomatoes) (283g)
- 3 ½ cups chicken stock 720 g
- 1 lb cavatappi or other short pasta 453 g
- ½ cup plus 2 Tbsp Greek cream cheese 110 g***
- ½ cup nonfat Greek yogurt 120 g
- ½ cup grated cheddar cheese 56 g
Instructions
- Heat a large dutch oven or heavy-bottom pot over high heat. Spray with a spritz of avocado oil and let it get hot. Add onion, zucchini, bell pepper and salt, and cook for 5-7 minutes until tender and fragrant.
- Scoot your veggies to the side if possible and let the surface of your pot get nice and hot for a minute before adding your ground turkey. Sprinkle the top of the meat with your dry seasonings (chili powder, cumin, oregano, and onion powder), and break it up until cooked through, stirring often and eventually mixing in the veggies.
- Add garlic cubes, tomato paste, and liquid smoke and cook for a minute, stirring well. Then pour in your tomato sauce, green chilis, enchilada sauce, rotel, and chicken broth. Let it get nice and hot for a minute and then turn it down to medium and add your pound of pasta. Let it simmer until your pasta is al dente (about as long as your pasta instructs you), stirring often. Check for doneness, but don’t let it get too soft, since it’ll just get softer over time. Turn off the heat.
- Stir in Greek cream cheese, and Greek yogurt. Top with grated cheddar and cover to let the cheese melt. It will continue to thicken up as it sits. Enjoy with a simple side salad!
Notes
* I wanted the veggies to really blend into the meat this time for my boys, so I used my salsa maker to essentially “rice” the zucchini and bell peppers!)
**I’m using Fulton Farms organic ground turkey in my calculations which is labeled at 4.5 fat/4 oz if you want to use a different ground meat option that’s close!
***I know Greek cream cheese can be hard to find. It’s just got a little less fat and a little more protein and still tastes amazing. But don’t stress if you can’t find it! Substitute with just ½ cups of “⅓ less fat cream cheese” and your macros for one serving will essentially just be +1 fat, - 1 protein. No big deal!
The macros below reflect traditional pasta. But here’s what they’ll look like if you choose a different pasta.
Protein Pasta: 361 cal, 45.3c, 7.8f, 29.2p, 6.4 fiber
Banza Pasta: 358 cal, 42.5c, 9.3f, 29.8p, 6.4 fiber
MFP Lillie Eats and Tells Lean Chili Mac