Easy White Chicken Chili — The Soup Mama Brought to the Hospital

Zaria Marie Carter was born on September 15, 2017, at Henry Ford Hospital. Seven pounds, four ounces. This week — the week she entered the world — I am going to tell you what happened, because she deserves the telling. Brianna's water broke at six AM on a Friday. I was awake — I am always awake at six — and she called from the bathroom, calm in the way that second-time mothers are calm, which is different from the panic of the first time. "It's time," she said. I called Gloria to come get Aiden. I called Mama. I loaded Brianna into the car. We drove to Henry Ford through Friday morning traffic, and I ran two yellow lights because time was a factor and because Brianna was gripping my hand with enough force to crack a walnut. Labor was eight hours. Brianna was a warrior. I stood next to her and held her hand and told her she was strong, which was not adequate to the moment but was all I had. The doctor said push. Brianna pushed. At 2:47 PM, Zaria Carter announced her arrival with a scream that echoed off the walls of the delivery room, and I thought: that is my daughter. That furious, perfect, loud person is my daughter. She was small and red and angry and beautiful. She had a full head of dark hair and her mother's face and her grandmother's lungs. The nurse put her on Brianna's chest and Brianna cried and I cried and the nurse cried and Zaria screamed, which was probably hunger but felt like joy. Mama came to the hospital with a container of chicken soup. Mama does not enter a building without food — it is physically impossible, like asking the sun not to shine. She held Zaria and said, "She looks like me." This was not modesty; it was genealogy. Zaria does look like Cheryl — something about the chin, the set of the mouth, the expression that says "I am in charge and you are not." Dad held her too, carefully, his diabetic hands trembling slightly, and he said, "Zaria. That's a good name." From Ronald Carter, this is poetry. Aiden met his sister the next day. Gloria brought him to the hospital and he stood at the door of the room, looking at the tiny bundle in Brianna's arms, and said, "That's baby?" We said yes. He walked over. He looked at her. He touched her hand. She grabbed his finger. He said, "She's small." He was right. She was small. But she would grow. She would grow into a force of nature. Into a Carter. Into someone who would change the world, one vegetable at a time. But that story is still years away. Today, she is just born. Today, she is just here. And here is enough.

Mama walked into that hospital room with a container of chicken soup like it was the most natural thing in the world, because for her it was. Cheryl Carter does not show up empty-handed — not to a birthday, not to a Tuesday, and certainly not to the arrival of her granddaughter. That soup was the first real meal I ate after Zaria was born, standing in the corner of the hospital room while Brianna slept and Zaria slept and the whole world felt new and overwhelming and right. This white chicken chili is my version of that moment — warm, creamy, something you can make in one pot when your hands are shaking and your heart is full and you need to feed the people you love.

Easy White Chicken Chili

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 2 (15-ounce) cans great northern beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (4-ounce) can diced green chiles
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 4 ounces cream cheese, cubed
• 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• Juice of 1 lime
• Fresh cilantro, sour cream, and tortilla chips for topping

Instructions

1. Sauté the aromatics. Heat olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the diced onion and cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
2. Season and sear the chicken. Push the onion to the side and add the chicken breasts. Season with cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Sear for 2 to 3 minutes per side until lightly golden.
3. Simmer. Add the chicken broth, great northern beans, and diced green chiles. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.
4. Shred the chicken. Remove the chicken breasts and shred with two forks. Return the shredded chicken to the pot.
5. Make it creamy. Stir in the cream cheese cubes and shredded Monterey Jack cheese until fully melted and smooth. Squeeze in the lime juice and stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
6. Serve. Ladle into bowls and top with fresh cilantro, a dollop of sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 380 | Protein: 32g | Fat: 16g | Carbs: 27g | Fiber: 6g | Sodium: 890mg