Recipe for the Gastronomically Impaired

I want to be that mom that cooks. To purchase real meat and actually know what do with it it. It's not that I don't have the desire to learn. It's that most nights I'm too exhausted to function beyond Hamburger Helper.

My new year's goal is to attempt to prepare at least one true dinner each weekend ('cause let's face it, it just ain't gonna happen Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday).

I'll start next weekend.

In the meantime, here's one deceptively easy recipe I LOVE from Real Simple's October 2004 issue. It truthfully takes just 10 minutes to prepare, 10 minutes to cook, and requires less than 10 ingredients. Even I can handle that!

And the excellent part is, while everyone's complimenting me on my amazing chili, I'm thinking they have no idea they're basically drinking salsa.

SOUTHWESTERN CHICKEN CHILI
Makes 4 servings

1 12-ounce jar salsa verde
3 cups cooked chicken pieces (Just buy a deli-counter rotisserie chicken and carve, baby)
1 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained
3 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon ground cumin (optional)
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup sour cream
Tortilla chips (optional - I like to roll up soft flour tortillas and dip)

Empty the salsa into a large saucepan. Cook 2 minutes over medium-high heat, then add the chicken, beans, broth, and cumin (if desired). Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Top each bowl with a sprinkling of onions, a dollop of sour cream, and some tortilla chips (if desired). For a soupier dish, use 4 cups of broth.

I usually forgo the onions (Mommy, I don't want the yucky green things) and sour cream. The day I actually have these items on hand, I'll know I'm happily one step closer to being that mom that cooks. Which, if I'm being honest, will take some getting used to. In what has to be one of the more surreal moments of the day, I realize I'm now officially a mom that shares recipes. Lord help me.