Creamy Crock Pot Chicken

My son and I both had the day off (thanks Abe and George!) and by 1:30 p.m. I realized I hadn't taken any meat out of the freezer for dinner.

I've seen slow cooker recipes where you put frozen chicken right in with a bunch of other "cream of" somethings and cook the hell out of it and get some sort of slop. Yes, I wanted to make that, mainly because I didn't plan anything for dinner and I was way too lazy and tired to go to the store.

What I ended up with was just what most people describe on their "crock pot chicken" Pinterest posts -- easy, creamy and delicious!

The secret to my dinner's success was the homemade condensed cream of mushroom soup that I concocted because I didn't have a can of it in my pantry. I followed this basic recipe from Pinch Of Yum, but sautéed 2 cups of sliced baby portobello mushrooms and 1/2 an onion, finely chopped, with half a stick of butter before adding the stock and milk. I also added smoked paprika, thyme and oregano to the recipe. It yielded quite a bit of thick soup and was perfect for my crock pot concoction, which was loosely based on this recipe from Coersfamily.com.

Creamy Crock Pot Chicken

Serves about 4

What you'll need:

2-4 pieces frozen chicken (I used skinless thighs)

1.5 cups condensed cream of mushroom soup (or one can of the store bought stuff)

1 brick of cream cheese (I used neufchâtel)

1 bay leaf

1-2 potatoes, quartered

2 carrots, cut into large chunks

1 celery rib, chopped

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup dry egg noodles

1/2 cup chicken stock

Directions:

Place your frozen chicken pieces in the slow cooker and surround it with the carrots, potatoes, celery and bay leaf. Pour over the cream of mushroom soup. Break up the cream cheese and add it to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours. After a few hours, stir it and break up the chicken if you can.

Forty-five minutes before serving stir in the peas and egg noodles, making sure to coat them thoroughly. If it's already looking a bit thick, add 1/2 cup chicken stock. Cover and cook on high.

Remove bay leaf and roughly cut up carrots and potatoes before serving.

Savor the fact that your entire family should adore this meal that took little effort and zero defrosting.

Chicken in a Sherry Mushroom Sauce with Baconated Collard Greens

Being a working mom can often leave me beat at the end of the day. I always try and throw something together, but once in a while it's nice to make something fancy.

The dish I made tonight was again inspired by an NPR show. Today on Fresh Air the chefs from America's Test Kitchen were talking turkey and mentioned a collard greens side dish that sounded pretty tasty. I wasn't able to find the recipe on Fresh Air's website, so I winged it.

I'm not too familiar with cooking collards, but what I came up with was bright, slightly smoky and delicious.

The chicken, coincidentally enough, was inspired by an America's Test Kitchen recipe for chicken piccata. This was healthy meal and was enjoyed by all (even our son liked the collards!)

Serves 3, prep/cooking time: 45 mins.

Ingredients for the chicken:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Olive oil
2 tsp. soy sauce
3 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
salt and pepper
flour
butter
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cups chopped fresh mushrooms (such as button, crimini and baby portobello)
1/4 cup sherry or white wine
3/4 cup chicken stock
2 Tbs. fresh parsley, chopped
1 tbs. capers (optional)
squeeze of lemon

Ingredients for the collards:
1 bunch collard greens
3 slices bacon, chopped
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
1 cup chicken stock
2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper

Directions:

With a fork, stab the chicken all over. Place in a large Ziploc bag with 3 Tbs. olive oil, the soy sauce, vinegar, mustard, 3 cloves of garlic, salt and pepper. Marinate chicken in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, rinse the collards and remove the stalks. Roughly chop the collards. In a dutch oven, brown the bacon and set aside. Add 1 Tbs. olive oil and sauté the onions till soft, about 5 minutes. Add the collards and stir till they are wilted, about 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock, cover and let steam for 30 minutes, adding more stock if needed. There should be very little liquid in the pot toward the end, so partially cover and let liquid evaporate if needs be.

While the collards cook, pat dry the chicken and dredge in flour.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 Tbs. butter and 1 Tbs. olive oil. When pan is hot, add the chicken and brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Set chicken aside.

Add the mushrooms and onions and sauté till onions are soft. Add 2 cloves of garlic and cook for one minute. Stir in 2 Tbs. flour and cook for another minute. Pour in the sherry and stock and bring to a simmer, scraping up all the yummy burnt bits from the bottom of the pan.

When the sauce has thickened, place the chicken back in the pan. Cover the pan and place it in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Set the chicken on your serving plates and add parsley and capers to the sauce in the pan. Stir and spoon over the chicken. Add a fresh squeeze of lemon juice to each plate.

To finish the collards, stir in the bacon bits and vinegar. Add salt and vinegar to taste.

Serve with brown rice or farro.

Chicken with Artichokes in a Smoky Cream Sauce

I'm on day seven of the South Beach Diet (or, as I like to call it, the South Beach Challenge) and I'm finding more ways to make delicious food without missing pasta.

Last night was chicken with roasted red peppers, capers and artichoke hearts in a smoky cream sauce. Ok, ok, I broke a few guidelines on this one. I used chicken thighs when the diet recommends white meat and I used half and half. The official cookbooks recommend fat-free half and half (which sounds like an oxymoron to me) but when I looked at the ingredients at the grocery store, the second ingredient was corn syrup. What the? That's why I stuck to the regular kind.

Here's how to make it.

Serves 2

Ingredients:
olive oil
2 skinless chicken breasts (or 4 thighs), cut into large chunks
1 roasted bell pepper, sliced
1/2 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 Tbs. capers
6 canned artichoke hearts, cut in half
1/4 cup chicken stock (eyeball it)
1/4 cup half and half or milk (eyeball it)
1/4 cup fresh or canned chopped tomatoes (eyeball it)
1 Tbs. smoked paprika
salt and pepper
handful of chopped fresh basil

Directions:
Coat a skillet with olive oil and heat over medium high. Salt and pepper the chicken. When the olive oil is just starting to smoke add the chicken. Brown both sides (about 5 minutes each side). Refrain from moving the chicken around to ensure a nice golden brown. Set chicken aside.

Add the peppers, onion, garlic, capers and artichokes and sauté till onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken back to the pan and pour in the tomatoes, stock, cream and paprika. Bring to a simmer for about 5 minutes to thicken it up a little. Turn down the heat and cover. Let simmer 10 minutes or until chicken is done all the way through. Toss in the basil and cook uncovered another minute or so, combining everything.

Serve and sprinkle with parmesan cheese, if you like.