• 2 lbs ground turkey or beef
• 3 cups tomato juice (approx 1/2 qt)
• 1 large can (28oz) diced tomatoes
• 2 cans chili beans
• 2 cans black beans
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 TBSP minced garlic cloves
• 1 small can tomatoes with chilis
• 16 oz GF pasta
• Spices – chili powder, salt, garlic powder to taste

• Brown ground turkey in a skillet. For chunkier chili, make sure to keep meat in larger chunks.
• Add chili powder to taste – approximately 1 tsp for a little kick, more if you like spicier foods.
• Drain grease, add to crock.
• Add tomato juice, tomatoes, beans, green pepper, onion, and garlic to crock.
• Sprinkle salt and garlic powder on top, mix everything together.
• Cook in crock pot on low for 4.5 hours.
• Approximately 15-20 minutes before dinner time, make pasta according to package directions. (We like Aldi’s liveGFree Brown Rice & Quinoa pasta).
• For this brand – Boil for 7-10 minutes, drain.
• Add to individual bowls, mix, and enjoy!

Sharing recipes was something I never really considered would be a part of my Charley’s Circus content. But since our whole family began eating gluten and dairy-free, making three meals a day (and attempting to not make the same boring things over and over) has taught me a lot and become a part of our daily life! I scoff at him, but my husband has been exclaiming recently, “BABE. I mean… you’ve always been a good cook. But man you’ve really stepped it up a notch lately.” Combine that with people constantly asking me for recipes, and BAM. I have more than enough reason to share some of our favorite meals with you here on Charley’s Circus.

Because gluten and dairy are inflammatory foods for everyone and not just those with allergies or sensitivities, you don’t have to have a “reason” to eat gluten-free grains or non-dairy foods other than you want to give your body the best fuel you possibly can.

Anyone I’ve ever talked to who has cut these foods out of their diets and found replacements has shared how much better they felt.  I know we do.
I won’t get into the science or arguments for eating gluten and dairy free (for now – *evil laugh*), as I assume you’re here because you already want this gluten and dairy-free recipe and don’t need coercion. 😉

Just know this – if you want to go for it, it’s a lot easier than you think.
Once you find replacements for the foods you already eat, you can eat (basically) the same things. Just change your ingredients.
For example, instead of wheat flour, use one of a host of gluten-free flours. Instead of cow’s milk, use almond or coconut milk. Instead of using butter for baking and cooking, use coconut or olive oil. Because of the demand, it’s becoming easier to find these replacements in stores, and even though they might cost a little more, I’d say feeling better and knowing you’re giving your body better fuel is worth so much more than a handful of dollars.

Everything I’ve listed as an ingredient (and for any recipe I’ll probably ever share), you can find at Aldi. Aside from my almond milk coffee creamer (which our Aldi only carries occasionally), I get 100% of our groceries at Aldi, and make countless different meals using the foods they carry. They’re adding new gluten and dairy-free options all the time. (Thanks Aldi!) Because Aldi is a small grocery, if you shop elsewhere, I’m sure you’ll be able to find the ingredients there as well.

This is a super simple version of a chili I like to make from time to time especially during the cold months of the year. You really can’t mess it up. You can add more or less of each kind of bean, use different kinds of peppers, hold the onion… whatever you want. Cooking it on low for 4.5 hours leaves the veggies a bit crunchy instead of mushy, and making the pasta separately & adding it in at the end (if you are even a weirdo like me who likes noodles in your chili) keeps it from getting mushy and disintegrating. The best part is that it tastes even better as leftovers and feeds our family of 4 for several meals!

We like to bake up a box of Aldi’s gluten-free cornbread mix to go with it, and voila! Dinner is served.