Thursday, September 6, 2012

Ridiculously Easy Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan

It's hard to find meals that are both ridiculously easy and still healthy. Usually, it's a trade-off between health and convenience. Today, I knew that I would be making dinner for just Alex and myself. On nights like these, I like really easy meals. On nights like these, I usually don't get to cleaning up until well after my guy is in bed. There is nothing worse than being exhausted AND walking into a kitchen that looks like a small tornado passed through to say hello. On nights like these, I am extra thankful for my crock pot. I recently discovered I can pretty much cook anything in a crock pot. Today, I was craving Italian food...but I couldn't see myself juggling 3 pans and chopping fresh herbs while Alex complained in the background. Enter my recipe for Ridiculously Easy Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan. 

To be fair, it's not breaded and fried (YUM!)...and I used a jar of sauce instead of homemade. This meal wasn't meant to be gourmet and fabulous; it was meant to be easy and healthy. It literally took 5 minutes to prep everything. My crock pot did the rest. Here's what I used: 


Yes, that's string cheese. Forgive me, but my fancy mozzarella cheese looked a little sad. Thank goodness I am a mom of a toddler. String cheese is a household staple and saved this dinner. Also, pretend there is parmesan cheese in this picture. You'll need it. 

Method: Put chicken in crock pot; sprinkle with 3 cloves chopped garlic; cover with sauce; set crock pot to low and cook until tender. Thighs will cook in 3-4 hours, breasts will take a little longer - about 5-6 hours. When chicken is tender, cover chicken with string cheese pieces (I broke each string cheese into a few pieces) and cook until melted, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Serve with: 

- pasta and sauce from crock pot
- caesar salad

I wish I had a picture to show the final product, but Alex was hungry, and...who am I kidding? I totally forgot. 

Enjoy!