How Am Supposed to Live Without You

I'm calling this Confetti Chili.  The colors before it cooked down a bit more were so vibrant and appetizing.  This was made with ground chicken so it was essential to add lots of flavors with spice and vegetables.  In went red and green bell peppers, onion, carrot, celery, canned fire-roasted tomatoes, green onion, cumin, chili, lots of garlic.

I also added two beans, pinto and black for a bit of variety.  I still have a hard time loving big beans like the kidney but I know how beneficial they are. Someday I will bite the bullet and go for full on kidney.

Because I'm not doing the sour cream and cheese over the top these days, I opted for diced garlic-dill pickles and cold onion.  This was something shared with me by an old roommate in SF.  Funny how those simple little regional tips can really add so much to a dish.  The pickles cut the heat and the onions are nice to crunch into when everything else is sort of chunky but soft.

When we changed our diet at first I was sneaking Cracker Barrel cheese bars in flavors like Cracked Black Pepper and Mediterranean Herb in my produce drawer for nice snack sized chunks.  I still want to believe cheese is not a trigger for my migraines but the fact that they have subsided a good portion of the month leads me to the inevitable conclusion.  But how could something I love so much and cherish be bad for me?  How could life be so cruel as to take something I enjoyed so passionately away?  How can I ever live without my cheese?

This chicken chili is a good start.