Sunday Family Dinner: Savory Southwestern Chicken Chowder and Tasty Turkey Buffalo Balls!

I woke up this morning to the feeling of....

FALL!!!!! 

(I know, I know...shocking right? Everyone is chomping at the bit for September 21st to hit!)

 BUT...nevertheless, it's Sunday. It's September.  It's fall y'all!! Football will be on the TV all day, 100 degree days are finally behind us, and pumpkins are piled high at grocery stores.  

Everyone loves this time of year.  You can't help but see the childlike joy that comes over us when we think about hot apple cider, savory soups, changing leaves, and skinny jeans with boots:) I love it. 

 Sunday means... Family Dinner Day: a last minute invitation will go out to great friends, and whomever can make it over to our beach bungalow will.  There will be a tasty meal, some tasty wine…and of course….a tasty game (or 6) on TV.  I wasn't sure what menu I was going to come up with until I woke up.  And then I knew...  

It's not quite time for pasta (another fall family tradition), But it felt like time for soup! So I decided to dominate a fairly simple Southwestern Chicken Chowder, with delicious and healthy buffalo turkey balls to start.  It will hopefully be amazing…and of course…there will be some hot apple cider simmering on the stove as well.  
How can you not get excited for a Sunday like that?  Like I said….I love Fall:)

First thing's first, let's keep this easy people! It's technically a day of rest:), and I never want these impromptu dinners to be stressful in anyway.  An afternoon filled with husbands and football means the food better be hearty, simple to serve, and easy to eat while the cheering and jeering ensues in my living room.  It is also relatively impossible to pry them away from the TV...so a meal crowded around our coffee table was inevitable.  That, however, does NOT mean we can't spruce up said coffee table and add a little pizazz to go with this Sunday family dinner! A hodgepodge pile of 50 cent pumpkins and some pretty tea lights were just the ticket:)

Next I popped these delicious and GLUTEN FREE Buffalo Balls in the oven. This recipe is a fabulous Pinterest find for me, and honestly I haven't seen a need to alter it in any way.  So credit where credit due check out these

Tasty Turkey Buffalo Balls

In all honesty I almost didn't get a picture taken, that's how fast they were being consumed!

super delish with some ranch dressing to dip!

And finally this very easy Chicken Chowder. 

1/2 cup chopped onion (I've been loving yellow ones)

4 bacon strips, diced

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

1 package (32ish ounces) frozen cubed hash brown potatoes(Or chop up raw ones if you have time/energy!)

2 cans (14.5 ounces each) chicken broth

1 can (14-3/4 ounces) cream-style corn

1 can (11 ounces) Mexicorn, drained

1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies

1/2 cup pearl onions (frozen or not...whatever you can find in store)

1 Rotisserie Chicken!

salt and pepper to taste!

1. In a Dutch oven (or soup pan), saute onion and bacon until onion is tender and bacon is crisp.  Stir in the flour, cumin, chili powders, and garlic powder.  Cook on high and stir for 1 minute or until thickened.

2.  Stir in the hash browns, broth, cream corn, Mexicorn, chilies and pearl onions.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until heated through. Add more broth if you like it less thick. While simmering, pull meat off the the rotisserie chicken in bite sized pieces.  Stir into soup. Add salt and pepper and more spices to taste. 

Yield: I would say 6-8 servings depending on what else you serve with it.  Rossi and I have a tendency to go back for seconds a lot!! This soup just gets better and better and thicker and thicker the longer you let it simmer...and it's AMAZING as leftovers!

SO...that was pretty much it for a fun, family filled Sunday!  No music playlist for this get together...football ruled the speakers today.  But there was much love and much laughter...All around a wonderful Sorella Style event:)

Love and laughter!

Kacey