Chicken Santa Fe

Ok so who doesn't love crock pot (or slow cooker depending on your choice of words) meals??!! HELLO? Throw some stuff into the crock pot, let it sit all day, and come home to a wonderful smell and a yummy cooked meal... how can you not like that!

This fall and winter, we have been expanding our collection of crock pot recipes here and there to use the crock pot more often. It does waaaaay more than chili people although I do love turkey chili, don't get me wrong! I found this recipe at RecipeGirl and tweaked it some to make it more to our liking and a little healthier. It was fabulous!

Here is what I did:

Chicken Santa Fe

One 15 oz can white beans
One 15 oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 - 1 1/2 cup bottled chunky salsa
1 pkg of chicken breasts (1.65 lb)
5 oz of low fat cream cheese, cut into chunks
1 cup shredded cheddar

1. In a slow cooker, mix beans, and 1/2 cup salsa. Top with chicken and pour remaining salsa over the chicken. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours (or high for 3 hours) until chicken is tender and cooked throughout.

2. Shred chicken with a fork or any type of utensil you want. Add cream cheese. Stir and let cream cheese melt into the mixture to create a creamy sauce.
3. For serving: I served the chicken & sauce over brown rice with cheddar cheese, green onions, cilantro, and a little dolop of sour cream on top. Or you can serve these as tacos with cheese and a couple of taco fixings such as lettuce and tomato.
Serves: 6

It almost looks like white bean chicken chili in color which isn't extremely colorful which is why I like to add the greens on top. You could throw in some jalapenos if you wanted to make it spicier.

Here is my trusty crock pot on the counter. When I get home from work I just switch it over from Low to Keep Warm until we are ready to eat. It was my grandmother's crock pot before she downsized and it is a HUGE crock pot. I don't know the exact specifications but it's quite large. It also has a zip up case which is nice for traveling to keep dishes warm.

So go and cook with your crock pot... it's so easy it barely feels like cooking! Hope you enjoy!

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