Chicken Corn Chowder in the Slow Cooker

• Ingredients:
• 1-1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
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• 12 ounces red potatoes, sliced and diced thin
• 1 sweet onion, diced thin
• 3 carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced thin
• 2 cups corn kernels, frozen, canned or roasted
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• 4 cups chicken broth or bone broth
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
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• 1/2 cup half and half (milk mixed with heavy cream)
• 4 tablespoons cornstarch
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

• 1 package of bacon, baked in the oven til crisped and browned, then diced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives or scallions
• shredded cheddar cheese
• a crusty, crackling baguette

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This will be a 7-8 hour event, with 3 hours of slow cooking the chicken, then 4-5 hours slow cooking the soup.

I started with putting uncooked chicken breasts in my slow cooker, then poured about a cup of bone broth on top of them. Take the 3 cloves of garlic and sprinkle/spread on top of the chicken. Add some salt and pepper on top, then close the slow cooker and cook on high for 3 hours. I turned my breasts twice while cooking because I can't let things alone, but it's not necessary to do that.

With about 20 minutes left on the breasts, I chopped up all the veggies. I used a bag of mixed baby potatoes, so there were red, gold, and purple in there. You can use all red if you like. I always dice onions and celery very small and thin, so that upon cooking they kinda melt away into the liquid, or at least you never bite into a big chunk. Usually I keep the shredded carrots on hand, because peeling and chopping them is just another thing that takes time. Whatever carrot shape you like works here -- shredded, waffle, or thin rounds.

When the chicken is done, put the breasts on a plate and shred with two forks. The goal is medium bite-sized pieces. You can leave some bigger pieces, because that's fun. However, refrain from turning it into confetti -- not really what we're going for.

Dump all the things back into the slow cooker -- chicken, potatoes, celery, onions, carrots, and frozen corn. Pour the rest of the broth in. Sprinkle in the thyme, oregano, paprika, salt, and pepper. Give it a few tosses with a large spoon to mix the seasonings and the veggies. Cook on high for 5 hours, stirring every hour.

The last 30 minutes of cooking are when you add the last ingredients to make the soup thick and creamy. Stir the half and half, cornstarch, and butter in a small bowl. When it's totally smooth and combined, stir it into the crockpot. If your soup seems too thin, you can add little amounts of cornstarch to thicken it. Always go slow when adding things to thicken soups, and give it a few minutes rest to absorb and recheck. Your soup may thicken suddenly after a minute and could end up TOO thick if you added too much.

Now is a good time to cook the bacon in the oven. Carefully line a large pan with foil, making sure the foil comes up the sides of every side of your pan. That keeps bacon grease from leaking under the foil and making a mess. Lay bacon strips flat side-by-side, and cook at 350 for 20-25 minutes until brown and crispy. After baking, crumble or dice the cooled bacon for the top of the finished soup. This will be a lot of bacon -- save some for tomorrow! Also -- now is the time to chop your scallions or chives.

Serve hot chowder with crumbled bacon, chopped scallions, sprinkles of your favorite cheddar cheese on top, and a hunk of a crusty, crackling baguette on the side. Cool the leftover chowder and freeze in small containers to have simple meals ready for reheating later.

Autumn Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

Filling:
6-8 pearl onions
1 cup shredded carrots
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp minced fresh ginger
2 cups chicken broth
1 medium Granny Smith or Honneycrisp apple, peeled, sliced in thin, small chunks
1/4 cup dried cranberries
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 cups cooked pulled or roasted chicken
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

To make filling: Drop pearl onions into boiling water for 30 seconds; drain and peel. Steam pearl onions and carrots until tender.

In large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Whisk in flour and ginger until smooth. Reduce heat to low and gradually whisk in chicken broth.

Preheat oven to 450°F

Stir in pearl onions, carrots, apples, cranberries, lemon juice and chicken. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring regularly. Stir in salt and pepper. Spoon filling into deep, 10-inch ceramic or glass pie dish.

Cover filling with a premade pie crust. Trim and crimp edges. Use small knife to cut several slits in center of pie. (Alternatively, make decorative cuts in pie crust before setting it on top of pie.)

Set pie on baking sheet and place in oven on middle rack. Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 400°F and continue baking for an additional 20 minutes, or until pie bubbles around edges and top is nicely browned. Serve piping hot.

For added flavor, serve with goat cheese crumbles.

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

I made this great recipe recently.  It was creamy, delicious, and filling.  I changed only a couple things because of what I had in my pantry -- where it calls for "onion", I used a sweet onion.  Where it calls for "wild rice", I used white rice.  Where it calls for "cream", I used 2 1/2 cups milk and 1/2 cup cream.  It would be tastier with wild rice, for sure.  It also made plenty, so I ate it for lunch every day for a week.  With fresh cracked pepper on top -- perfecto!

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup via The Pioneer Woman