Saturday, July 13, 2013

Slow Cooker Chicken Parmesan

I've seen recipes on Pinterest for making chicken parm in the crock pot and I've been wanting to do it for a while now. Yesterday, I didn't plan ahead for dinner before I left for work, but I was contemplating making the chicken parm. When I left work, I called T to ask what was for dinner, and the first thing out of his mouth was...Chicken Parm!

When I got home, the internet was being wonky and wouldn't load Pinterest on my phone so I could get to the recipe. I remembered that it had bread crumbs involved and the chicken was supposed to have that nice crispy crust. Well...mine didn't get the crispy crust, since I didn't get to reread the recipe. But when I bit into the chicken, my reaction was "Holy COW, this is AMAZING". We will DEFINITELY be making this meal again when the kids get home. And if My Fitness Pal is to be believed, it's roughly 375-400 calories per serving, too!

Slow Cooker Chicken Parm
Ingredients
Frozen chicken tenders - I used about half the 2.5 lb bag from Aldi
1Jar spaghetti sauce - I used the mushroom kind from Aldi, but any of their sauces would be great
2-3 Tbsp minced garlic (I LOVE garlic, so you can do more or less, depending on your taste)
1 box whole wheat thin spaghetti - Aldi has fit and active brand
1 small can mushrooms
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
Parsley, Basil, Oregano
Onion Powder
Salt
Pepper

I started by layering the chicken tenders in the bottom of the crock pot, and then sprinkling the onion powder, salt, pepper and Italian herbs on top.
Next I dropped the healthy dose of garlic on top, along with the bread crumbs and grated Parmesan. And then you pour in the spaghetti sauce. Once I poured the sauce in, there was still a good bit in the jar that I wanted to use and not waste. Rather than using a spatula to try and scrape it out, inevitably getting sauce all over my knuckles, I poured in a little bit of water, no more than 1/4 of the jar, put the lid on and shook it until the sides were clear. Then I just dumped it, water and all into the crock pot.
I didn't have all night to wait, so I put the lid on the crock pot and set it to high. If I'd been smart and set it up before I left for work, I would have set it for low and just let all the ingredients make friends through the day. But it's nice to know that I can set it for high and have a delicious meal in about 2 hours (during which I watched a couple episodes of Orange is the New Black on Netflix.

Once the chicken was cooked through, I put the pasta on to cook. In it's own pot. On the stove. Haha...after the rice fiasco the other night, I wasn't taking ANY chances with dinner. So I just cooked the spaghetti like normal on the stove. Once it was done, though, I just drained it and dumped it into the crock pot with the chicken and sauce. I mixed it all through and then sprinkled some more Parmesan on top (I'm a firm believer that you can almost never have too much cheese).
This was so good that we were all fatties and ate the WHOLE THING. No leftovers.
So do yourself a favor - make this for dinner. You can thank me later.



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