Crock Pot Italian Chicken

I know this recipe isn't breaking news. In fact I've seen it for years in magazines, cook books, and more recently on blogs. But I've never actually made it. To be honest the ingredients didn't really appeal to me. As I've mentioned before, I love crock pot cooking, but I really try not to use too many "cream of whatever" or processed ingredients. But, with so many great organic options on the market I decided to make a slightly healthier version. I found an organic cream of chicken soup and an organic dry Italian dressing packet at our local Sprouts Grocery Store for about what I'd pay for the regular options. Obviously, the regular options are fine to use too, but if you can get your hands on these products (pictured below) or something similar, I highly recommend it. Also, when crock pot cooking, I always try to throw in a few extra fresh ingredients. So with this one, I added fresh mushrooms, and topped it with fresh Italian parsley and fresh toasted breadcrumbs. Honestly, I think those ingredients made all the difference. All in all, I get why this recipe has stood the test of time. It's easy, family friendly, and with a few tweaks, fairly healthy.


Crock Pot Italian Chicken
Adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything

4 chicken breasts

1 packet dry Italian dressing

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened (light can be substituted)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs
2 tbsp chopped Italian parsley
Serve with pasta or rice (I prefer whole wheat pasta)

Directions:

Place the chicken in a crockpot and sprinkle Italian dressing over it. Combine cream cheese and cream of chicken soup in a small pot over low heat and pour over chicken. Add in mushrooms. Cook on low for 5-6 hours. You can leave it in there all day. Once chicken is done you can leave the chicken breasts whole, cube it, or even shred it. Mine naturally shredded as I mixed it before serving.

Just before serving, melt butter in a saute pan. Add breadcrumbs and toast until golden brown.

Serve chicken over pasta or rice (I used whole wheat pasta). Top with breadcrumbs and Italian parsley.
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