Crockpot Chili Chicken

Crockpot Tender Chili Chicken
Adapted from :New Recipes from Quilt Country by Marcia Adams

I have always loved this recipe. And yes, it's another one of the recipes I feed to my sister. This time around though I tried to make it easier. In the past, after dredging the chicken(originally pork chops) through the flour, you brown them in hot oil and then simmer in a pan. Considering I never got the oil hot enough to successfully pull this off, I dredged and threw everything into a crockpot which tasted just as good as the original. Although I think with previous attempts I may have been using old ginger, because for some reason I could really taste the addition this time.

1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3/4 tsp ground ginger
5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup dried onion flakes
2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup chicken stock
3/4 cup chili sauce
3 tbsp cider vinegar
2 tbsp light or dark brown sugar, packed
1 tsp dried thyme

In a shallow dish, combine the flour, salt, pepper and ginger. Dredge the chicken in the flour, shaking off any excess. Lay in slightly overlapping circle in crockpot.

Add onion and garlic to bowl. Stir in stock, chili sauce, vineagar, brown sugar and minced thyme.

Turn crockpot to High (I was hungry and in a hurry). Lay small mini potatoes in circle around chicken. Cook until potatoes are tender and enjoy.

Pasta Bolognese

Pasta Bolognese has got to be my favorite/go-to recipe that I always trot out when my sister comes to visit. Today, I decided in celebration of the 3 day weekend, I was going to make it for myself.

I found the recipe in a book I picked up years ago from a cookbook store that has long since gone out of business (fortunately for me as I work very close to said area). And it is a fairly fool proof recipe providing the pasta doesn't overcook. However, I always forget that it's half a pound of meat not a full pound. But it's still yummy. And who would have thought it...getting all the ingredients together before cooking made it a lot easier.


Pasta Bolognese
from "Quick from Scratch Pasta (Food & Wine Series)

Serves 4

2 TBSP Butter
1/4 pound sliced bacon, cut into 1/4 inch strips
1 onion, chopped
1/2 lb ground beef (I use turkey)
1 cup canned low sodium beef or chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 TBSP tomato paste
1/2 tsp dried oregano
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper (I used jarred)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 lb spaghetti
2 TBSP chopped fresh parsley

1. In a large frying pan, heat the butter and bacon over moderately low heat. Cook until the bacon renders some of it's fat, about 3 minutes. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until starting to soften, about 3 minutes longer.
   
2. Stir in ground beef and cook unitl meat is no longer pink, about 2 minutes. Add the broth, wine, tomato paste, oregano, salt, and pepper. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens, about 25 minutes. Stir in the cream and remove from heat.
   
3. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the spaghetti until just done, about 12 minutes. Drain and toss with the sauce and parsley.