Crockpot cooking

I'm not a huge fan of crock pot cooking mainly because I haven't found many recipes I like, using the crock pot. I do not like to use cream of anything soup, my husband hates them and I'd rather use fresh ingredients, and a lot of the crock pot recipes use these soups. I still attempt recipes because I like the idea of not having to fuss too much over dinner.

I just recently tried Crock Pot Balsamic Chicken, it didn't use any soups and sounded tasty! It did come out really good, I accidentally over cooked mine due to a last minute errand I had to run, but it still tasted pretty good. It reminded us slightly of barbecue, it has a lot of great flavor and wasn't bland, like most of crockpot recipes I find.

Ingredients

 1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 teaspoons dried minced onion

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs...I use breasts

Sprinkle of fresh chopped parsley

 

Directions

 Combine the first five dry spices in a small bowl and spread over chicken on both sides. Set aside. Pour olive oil and garlic on the bottom of the crock pot. Place chicken on top. Pour balsamic vinegar over the chicken. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours. Sprinkle with fresh parsley on top to serve
http://providenceltddesign.com/home/sunday-supperbalsamic-chicken-in-the-crock-pot

My chicken was frozen, but it still cooked as long as recommended. I also didn't have minced onion I had onion powder which still worked. I do want to attempt this recipe again and try it when its not over cooked(oops).

I have been in search of a new side to my meals, I'm bored with rice and potatoes in one form or another. One of my sides with the chicken was Amish noodles. They were ok, my kids liked them, I  was disappointed with how they came out, I feel they were a little dry, in fact I had to add more chicken broth because some of my noodles did not cook through.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter

1 chicken bouillon cube

2 (14 ounce) cans chicken broth

12 ounces egg noodles

 

Directions

In a large pan, brown the butter.

Add broth and bouillon cube, bring to a boil. Add noodles, bring to a second boil, cover and turn off heat. (leave pot on the same burner). Let stand 30 minutes, stirring 2 or 3 times

http://www.food.com/recipe/amish-noodles-223730

 

I followed the directions completely but like I said my noodles didn't cook so I had to add another cup of broth. I found them bland and dry, the picture on the site makes them look yummy fluffy and moist(the reason I tried them) but it didn't turn out that way. I don't think I'll be attempting them again.

 

If anyone has tried these recipes I would love to hear how they came out for you, or if you had to change anything as well that maybe helped with the flavor let me know, I'd love some feed back!