Quick and Easy Turkey Chili is perfect for all the cold wintery weekends, regardless of what Taylor and Kelce are doing this Sunday. This recipe is a go-to in my house. It’s filling, simple to prepare, and feels meaty and rich, but it’s healthy, high in protein, and low in saturated fat.  No beans to soak — it’s a 1-2-3 one-pot-wonder.  I am certain you and your family will enjoy it.

I’m thrilled to announce that Good and Good for You is heading to the Atlanta Journal Consitution! I’ll still send out this FREE weekly newsletter and I will also create additional recipes for AJC readers and subscribers. The response to my very public health journey has been amazing and I am grateful to be able to share Good and Good for You recipes on an even larger scale.

Read on for this week’s best life-living tip about not-so-easy diet culture, a self-care technique that might surprise you — it’s about picking up your phone, and of course, a Good and Good for You recipe for this Quick and Easy Turkey Chili.

Best Life Living Tip

Living your best life essentially means living a life that makes you happy and also one that allows you to be at your full potential. Part of that includes creating healthy boundaries and well, sometimes not giving a hoot about what other people think. Be strong and rooted in YOU. Let YOU be the firm foundation of how YOU live your life.

Being consumed with what others think is a No-Win Situation. Take a moment and think about all of the times you let other people’s thoughts dictate how you act. Living life by acting the way you think people want you to is no way to live. It’s important to believe in yourself and stop basing your sense of self on what other people think. Focus on yourself and learn that you don’t need to please other people to please you.

I strive for that and am not overly concerned about what people think. Imagine my surprise when I was caught off guard by my reaction to a post regarding posting before and after weight loss photos. It got under my skin long after I had scrolled past.

Truthfully, it’s not all that shocking. Weight loss is HIGHLY personal and sensitive. This subject is an Achilles heel for many….. To me, my before and after photos are a symbol of my new and improved life — and I want to shout it from the mountaintops! Check out this IG reel for my very real and raw feelings. I’d love to hear what you think, too.

Self-Care Technique

Self–care, as the name suggests, is all about caring for yourself to ensure that both your physical and emotional needs are met. Self-care doesn’t always have to be about spending time by yourself. Social connection is a form of self-care, too.

Social self-care is your ability to build and maintain healthy interpersonal relationships with others. Social connections help us to feel loved and less alone but are also essential in developing and improving our communication skills. Reconnecting with old friends or simply building and maintaining healthy relationships with loved ones is a great way to maintain social self-care.

Scrolling into Self-Care

Here’s a way you can help you — and someone else, too. You’re likely reading this on a mobile device. How can your phone be a self-care tool? STOP scrolling and START connecting.

• Practice self-care by messaging a friend to tell them why you are grateful for them.
• On a pretty walk? Send a friend a photo… I text one friend GM every single day on my walk! It makes us both feel good.
• Give someone a call and ask how they are doing.
• Shoot someone a text and say, “Hey! I think you are fabulous!”

And, you may need to “phast” for self-care. I deleted my Twitter account earlier this month and recently set up time limits on Instagram usage. Check out this article from Harvard on the effects of smartphones on your brain.

Ideas and Inspiration from Experts

What is Diet Culture? Diet culture is a set of cultural myths around food, weight, and health. It emphasizes thinness as an ideal, and labels foods and behaviors as either “good” or “bad.” (I cannot stand the concept of “guiltless eating” and “sinful pleasures.”)

SELF states, “Diet culture is an entire belief system that associates food with morality and thinness with goodness, and it’s rooted in the (very colonial) belief that every individual has full control and responsibility over their health.”

Diet culture can have negative consequences including poor mental health, negative body image, fat phobia, and even disordered eating. Diet culture can be harmful who don’t align with skinny — which has little to do with HEALTH.

Christy Harrison has built her whole career on being anti-diet and pro-health. She’s got best-selling books, podcasts, a newsletter and more. She’s someone I look to for reliable information. Check her out.

Thanks so much for reading. I hope you are enjoying the new format and information, as well as the recipes! I am glad that my recipes now contain nutritional information to make it easier for all of us. Hey — don’t forget that you got this. You can do it.

Bon Appétit Y’all!

Virginia Willis

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Quick and Easy Turkey Chili

The best eating plans include a lot of high protein, low-fat foods. Protein gives your body energy and helps to build muscle instead of fat. A robust chili like this one is both lean and filling. I’m hefty handed with the chile powder to give it some serious umpff! When you buy chile powder, buy dried chiles that have been dried and made into powder, not a mixture of dried chiles, ground herbs, and spices. All too often those blends contain a great deal of salt. My favorite chile powder is pure New Mexican chile powder made from Hatch peppers. It’s available online and in better grocery stores.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Course: Appetizer, chili, main, Soup, starter

Cuisine: American, Southern, southwestern

Keyword: canned beans, chili, easy appetizer, easy chili

Servings: 9 cups

Calories: 115kcal

Author: Virginia Willis

Ingredients

• tablespoon pure olive oil
• 1 sweet onion chopped
• 3 large garlic cloves chopped
• 1 28-ounce can no-salt-added whole tomatoes
• 2 14.5-ounce cans of low-sodium black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 carrot grated
• 3 cups low-sodium tomato juice
• 2 bay leaves preferably fresh
• ¼ cup ground dried red chiles
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
• Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

• Heat the oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and translucent, 3 to 5 minutes.
 Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 45 to 60 seconds. Add the tomatoes, beans, turkey, and carrot. Using a wooden spoon, break up the turkey, then add the tomato juice. Bring to a boil over high heat. Decrease the heat to simmer and add the bay leaves, ground chiles, cumin, coriander, and cayenne pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the turkey is tender and the flavors have married, about 30 minutes. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Ladle into warmed bowls and serve immediately.

Nutrition

Calories: 115kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 28mg | Sodium: 229mg | Potassium: 627mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 3562IU | Vitamin C: 22mg | Calcium: 61mg | Iron: 3mg

Let’s cook something up! If you are interested in hosting me for a speaking engagement, event, cooking class, or a book signing, let me know! Send an email to info@virginiawillis.com and we’ll be back in touch as soon as possible.

I am not a doctor, RD, or health professional. I am simply sharing what works for me. My blog is for informational or educational purposes only and does not substitute professional medical advice or consultations with healthcare professionals.

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Good and Good for You with Virginia Willis is a lifestyle brand that shares food, fun, and fitness through digital channels and online community; events, seminars, and speeches; and print media. For more information visit virginiawillis.com