Slow Cooking Chicken Margherita Pasta

In the past couple of weeks, we've had high temperatures upwards of 120F! It's been so hot around here, I can't even draw a bath for my kids in the evenings without adding about 6 cups of ice to the "Cold" water.  I love being able to cook dinner in my Crock Pot without heating up my house. I'm running the A/C enough already!

One of my favorite quick lunches is a Healthy Choice Café Steamers, especially their Chicken Margherita with Balsamic, with chicken, diced tomatoes, garlic, angel hair pasta and a balsamic sauce. Since I love this frozen meal so much, I decided to try and make a Copy Cat recipe that I could cook up for dinner in my crock pot. (I was surprised that I couldn't find one online!)

For my first attempt, I decided to go simple, using Lawry's Balsamic Herb Marinade for the basis of my sauce and just thickening it up with a corn starch slurry if it got too diluted in the crock pot. Also, I decided to just cook my pasta the old-fashioned way -- on the stove. However, OneDishDinners.com makes it sound so easy to add pasta to the slow cooker. I haven't tried it yet, but I plan to do so soon.

I put my frozen chicken in a lined crock pot with about 1 c of Lawry's Balsamic Herb Marinade, and cooked it on low for about 3 hours. (I did not pre-marinade the chicken.) Then, I added a can of petite diced tomatoes (drained) for the last hour of cooking. I boiled about 1/2 lb of thin spaghetti on my stove top while waiting for my chicken mixture to finish cooking. I decided that my sauce was a little too thin, so I thickened up the sauce with a corn starch slurry. I could have added more marinade to thicken it up, but I like a light balsamic flavor, and was worried that adding more marinade might have been overwhelming, but to each their own. I diced the chicken and mixed it with the pasta, tomatoes and thickened sauce in a big bowl and served it up.

My whole family loved this meal, including my toddler and preschooler. Everyone went back for seconds! I'd like to make a more "from scratch" version sometime, where I'm not dependent on the Lawry's marinade for the sauce, but I'm happy for now because this is so simple to throw together and it turned out really good!

The Recipe

Slow Cooker Chicken Margherita Pasta

5 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs (or 3 Chicken Breasts)
1 cup Lawry's Balsamic Herb Marinade
1 - 14oz can of Petite Diced Tomatoes, Drained
1/2 lb Thin Spaghetti
1/2 Tbsp Corn Starch
1 Tbsp Cold Water

In a lined crock pot, cook the chicken in the marinade for 3 hours on low. Add the drained can of petite diced tomatoes to the chicken and marinade in the crock pot. Slow cook for an additional hour, or until the chicken is cooked thoroughly. Remove chicken from crock pot and dice. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. If desired, combine the corn starch and cold water to make a slurry. In a small pan on the stove top, bring the corn starch slurry and about 1 or 2 cups of the tomato-marinade mixture to a boil, continuously stirring, until thickened. Combine the tomatoes, thickened sauce, chicken and pasta in a large bowl. Serve and Enjoy!

Making Easy Peanut Butter Fudge

At Christmas time, I had a lot of extra peanut butter to use up before it reached its Best By date.  This was one recipe I experimented with to use up that delicious peanut butter and it turned out wonderful!  I've never tried making fudge the traditional way, and to be honest, it sounds kinda hard.  This recipe was so easy and turns out very rich -- a little goes a long way -- making it a perfect treat to share with friends, family and neighbors!

Next time I make it, I will use a candy thermometer (which I got for Christmas) so I will stress less about whether or not it will come out right.  Also, I will make sure to sift all the powdered sugar well, so I won't get any lumps in an otherwise smooth confection.

 

The Recipe

Easy PB Fudge

(based on "Easiest Peanut Butter Fudge" by AngieH on allrecipes.com)

1/2 c butter
2  c brown sugar
1/2 c milk
1 c peanut butter
1 t vanilla extract
3 c powdered sugar, sifted

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Stir in brown sugar and milk.  Bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, heating to the soft-ball stage at 235 - 240 F (if using a candy thermometer).  Remove from heat.  Stir in peanut butter and vanilla.  Pour over powdered sugar in a large mixing bowl.  Beat until smooth. Pour into an 8x8 pan.  Chill until firm and cut into squares.

Baking Apple Pie from Scratch

I love this Apple Pie.  I actually never liked Apple Pie, or any baked fruit, until I tried this pie my mother in law made.  Now, I like to make it for my Hubby as a special treat.  I make the crust, filling and topping all in an hour (including being distracted by my small children) and then it bakes for 40 minutes.  Easy as Pie!

I use a super-simple, oil pie crust recipe. Why? Because I hate cutting cold butter.  And then, after all that work, I don't like waiting while my pie crust chills in the fridge before rolling it out.  I'm just too lazy.  This recipe comes from the Betty Crocker cookbook.  I like a thick crust, so I use the whole recipe for the one pie shell.  I mix it up in my kitchen aid and then I usually just press the dough into my deep dish pie pan, instead of rolling it out. 

For the Apple Pie Filling, I slice, peel and core my apples with an Apple Peeler I got at Bed, Bath, and Beyond (link).  I mix the apples in the sugar/flour/cinnamon mixture as I peel them.  When done, I dump them into the crust.

For the topping, I throw all the ingredients in my kitchen aid or Ninja mini food processor and then sprinkle on top.  That way, again, I don't have to worry about cutting cold butter. See... I'm lazy.

Before I throw it in the oven, I use an adjustable crust shield (link) to keep my crust edges from overcooking.  I just remove it for the last 5 minutes of baking.

The Recipes

Oil Pastry Pie Shell (from the Betty Crocker Cookbook)

1 3/4 c flour
1 t salt
1/2 c canola oil
4 T cold water

Mix flour, salt, and canola oil until it forms lumps the size of small peas.  Add cold water 1 Tbsp at a time until mixing almost cleans the sides of the bowl.  If the mixture still seems dry after adding 4 Tbsp of water, do not add more water.  Continue adding 1 Tbsp of oil until the appropriate consistency is reached.  Then, gather the dough and press it into a ball.  (Optional: Roll out dough to fit your pie pan.)  Press into pie pan and trim off excess.

Apple Pie

Pie Filling:
7-8 apples, peeled and sliced
3/4 c sugar
2 T flour
1 t cinnamon
1/8 t nutmeg (optional)

Topping:
1/3 c sugar
3/4 c flour
6 T firm butter

Preheat oven to 400 F.  Mix the apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Pour into pie shell.  Combine the topping ingredients until crumbs are the size of small peas.  Sprinkle topping evenly across the pie.  Bake at 400 F for 40 minutes.  The topping should be golden brown.