What a Crock

Slow cookers have been in the news lately, but not because January is National Slow Cooking Month.  In last week's episode of the popular NBC drama, "This is Us," a faulty slow cooker started a house fire which is presumably how a beloved character dies.  Reaction was swift with some fans posting on social media they threw out their slow cookers.  Crock-Pot -- the brand name -- reacted by setting up their first Twitter account (@CrockPotCares) to address the issue and assure consumers about the safety of crock-pots.

Although I've never watched this particular TV show, I am a fan of crock-pot cooking and have been since the late 1980s.  Like any appliance I use, I follow certain safety precautions.  I don't use a crock-pot with a damaged cord, cracked insert or if the unit is malfunctioning in any way.  When I use my crock-pot, I place it on the counter away from any flammable items.

If you like cooking with a crock-pot, here's a tasty recipe for Sweet and Sour Chicken you might want to add to your collection.  

Carrots, green pepper and onion are placed on the bottom of the crock-pot.

Minute tapioca -- also known as quick cooking and typically found in the grocery near boxes of gelatin -- acts as a thickening agent and is sprinkled over the vegetables.

Cubed, boneless, skinless chicken breasts go on top of the tapioca.

Pineapple chunks go over the chicken.  You can add two cans of pineapple, but make sure to discard the juice from the second can.  If you don't, you'll end up with a thin sauce.  To keep the pineapple from getting mushy, don't stir the mixture until it's done cooking.

Combine the remaining ingredients and pour them over the pineapple and chicken.

If you don't have instant chicken bouillon, you can crush a chicken bouillon cube and measure out 1/2 teaspoon of the granules.  One cube makes approximately 1 teaspoon of granules.

In eight to 10 hours, you'll have a ready to eat entree.  I serve the chicken over white rice with some Broccoli with Lemon on the side to round out the meal.

Whether you use your crock-pot for soups, entrees, vegetables, desserts, or something else, remember two final safety precautions.  When the food's done cooking, turn off the crock-pot and unplug the cord from the wall.

Crock-Pot Sweet and Sour Chicken

4 to 6 Servings

1 1/2 cups sliced carrots

1/2 cup chopped green pepper

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 Tbsp. Minute tapioca

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes

1 (8 oz.) can pineapple chunks in juice, drained (reserve juice)

3 Tbsp. brown sugar

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

1 Tbsp. soy sauce

1/2 tsp. instant chicken bouillon granules

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/8 tsp. salt

Place vegetables in bottom of crock-pot; sprinkle with tapioca.  Add chicken; add pineapple.  Combine reserved pineapple juice and remaining ingredients; pour over chicken and pineapple.  Do not stir. Cover and cook on low 8 to 10 hours.

© Margaret's Morsels

A Recipe in Persistence

Every recipe I post is a tried and true family favorite, affectionately known in our house as a "keeper."  Some keepers I've been making for years while others are new additions.  A few became keepers without any changes, deletions or additions, but most recipes require some tweaking. No keeper underwent more tweaking than the recipe I'm sharing today.

My son loves chicken alfredo and, although I've made it for years, he never liked my version.  A few years ago, I found a recipe for chicken alfredo that sounded so good, I went to the grocery and bought the ingredients so I could cook it that night.

I had to tweak the recipe before I even went to the grocery.  The original version called for broccoli, a vegetable my son will not eat.  I omitted the broccoli and prepared the rest of the recipe as directed.  It was good, but it needed more tweaking.  Two years and half a dozen versions later, I ended up with a recipe my family deemed a keeper.

In addition to omitting broccoli, I changed the chicken from boiled -- too bland -- to rotisserie; added salt and pepper; reduced the amount of milk; changed the assembly and cooking directions.  Two of the biggest changes -- using ziti instead of egg noodles and the addition of Mozzarella cheese -- were suggested by my son.

While the ziti is cooking, combine cream of chicken soup with milk, cubed rotisserie chicken, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and Mozzarella cheese.  

Drain the ziti and add it to the soup mixture; stir well to combine the ingredients.

Pour into a greased 2-quart casserole dish and bake until hot and bubbly.

Since I don't add broccoli to the mixture, I steam fresh broccoli to serve either on the side

or on top of a serving.

Normally, I wouldn't be so persistent with a recipe, but I knew I could turn this tasty dish from good into a keeper.  Thank goodness most recipes don't require this much tweaking!  

Chicken Alfredo

4 Servings

1/2 (8 oz.) pkg. ziti

1 (10 3/4 oz.) can cream of chicken soup (undiluted)

1 1/2 cups milk

2 cups cubed rotisserie chicken

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 1/2 cups finely shredded Mozzarella cheese

Cook ziti according to package directions; drain.  Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, combine soup, milk, chicken, Parmesan, salt, pepper and Mozzarella. Add ziti; stir to combine ingredients.  Pour mixture into a greased 2-quart casserole dish.  Bake at 400° for 30 to 45 minutes until hot and bubbly.

© Margaret's Morsels 

A Summertime Staple

Before summer is over, I want to share my favorite summertime recipe.  I make the first batch as soon as the mercury starts rising.  I obtained the recipe from a restaurant in Chattanooga 20 years ago.  It is the best Chicken Salad I've ever eaten!


All chicken salad recipes start out the same.  They use chicken, seasonings and something to bind it together.  Usually the binding ingredient is mayonnaise, but I've seen recipes that use sour cream, whipped cream, cream cheese and even Cool Whip.  Some recipes keep it simple, but other recipes add a lot of ingredients.  The additional ingredients fall into four categories:

• Fruit:  This is probably the most popular addition to chicken salad.  A lot of recipes use grapes, mandarin oranges or pineapple.  I've also seen recipes that use peaches, apricots, strawberries or cranberries.

• Vegetables:  Although not as popular as fruit, most recipes usually include celery, onion, pimentos or a combination of the three.  I've also found recipes that use garlic, green peas, green onions or broccoli.

• Texture:  Chicken salad doesn't have much texture which is why a lot of recipes include something crunchy.  Usually the crunch comes from celery or nuts, such as almonds, cashews, pecans or walnuts.  Some recipes add texture by adding bacon, poppy seeds or French fried onions.

• Seasonings:  This is where personal preference comes into play more than any other category.  I stick with salt and pepper, but there are recipes that call for lemon juice, sugar, mustard, vinegar, honey, mint or Worcestershire sauce.

Chicken salad is a versatile recipe.  If you don't like an ingredient, you can leave it out or substitute something else in its place.  If you think it needs additional ingredients, you can add things you like.  When you add or subtract ingredients, you need to adjust the amount of the binding ingredient and seasonings as well.

My recipe uses what I consider to be traditional ingredients for chicken salad, but it does contain one ingredient that is slightly exotic:  water chestnuts.  Water chestnuts are bland, but they are extremely crunchy.  I highly recommend leaving them in the salad.

I omit the pecans if I know someone is allergic to nuts.  You could put pecans in half the batch and leave the other half plain.  However, you need to make sure you know which batch is which.  I find it easier just to leave out the pecans.

When I make chicken salad, I use chicken breasts with the skin and bone attached.  I find the meat is more flavorful than using boneless, skinless chicken breasts.  While the chicken is cooking, I prep all the other ingredients.  By the time the chicken is cooked, skinned and boned, I've got everything ready to assemble.  I make chicken salad a day ahead and refrigerate it so the flavors have time to blend.

I do all this while the chicken is cooking.

A nice way to serve chicken salad is on a lettuce lined platter.  You can use a cookie scoop to make individual mounds of chicken salad.  To make it fancier, top each mound with a sprig of parsley.


I like to serve chicken salad with a basket of croissants and another cold dish, such as Cherry Gelatin Fruit Salad.  Summer is quickly winding down, but I think there's enough time for me to make one more batch of chicken salad this season.

Chicken Salad

8 Servings

4 chicken breast halves

1 onion, quartered

1 stalk celery, halved

1 (8 oz.) can water chestnuts, drained and chopped

1/4 cup sweet pickle relish, drained

1 (2 oz.) jar diced pimentos, drained

1/4 cup chopped  pecans

1/2 cup chopped celery

3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped

mayonnaise (enough to moisten)

salt to taste

pepper to taste

Cover chicken with water; add salt, onion and stalk of celery.  Bring to a boil; reduce heat.  Cover and cook until chicken is tender, about 1 hour. Discard onion and celery.  Skin and debone chicken; chop into small chunks.  Add remaining ingredients; mix well.  Keep refrigerated.

© Margaret's Morsels

Barbecue Without the Grill

It's summertime and the livin' is easy.  It's also hot and humid outside. With some advance planning, you can make mealtime easy and keep the kitchen cool.  All it takes to serve a hot meal without feeling the heat is a slow cooker.

Slow cookers were introduced in the early 1970's, but have evolved over the years.  When they first hit store shelves, the liner --  the insert that goes inside the slow cooker -- wasn't removable.  This made clean up difficult and many slow cookers were pushed to the back of the cabinet.  A few years later, slow cookers became available with a removable liner.  A removable liner makes clean up a breeze since it can be washed in the dishwasher.


Slow cookers come in a variety of shapes and sizes ranging from one quart to six quart.  The most common shapes are round and oval.  The oval shape is wonderful for cooking something big like a roast.  My 21 year old slow cooker has two settings:  low and high.  Newer models have more settings and some are even programmable.


My husband loves barbecue chicken.  Although we live in a city where barbecue is king, rather than go out to eat, I fix barbecue chicken in my slow cooker.  The first time I fixed it, my husband deemed the recipe a keeper.  It's not so much a recipe, but a method.  It's quick and easy and only uses two ingredients:  barbecue sauce and chicken.

Put the desired number of boneless, skinless chicken breasts in the slow cooker.  Pour your favorite barbecue sauce over the chicken, covering the top of the chicken with the sauce.  If you're cooking several pieces of chicken, it's a good idea to put some barbecue sauce between the layers of chicken.  Put the lid on and turn the temperature setting to low.  Five hours later, your dinner will be ready.  One advantage of using a slow cooker is it cooks with slow and steady heat, so it's ok if the chicken cooks longer than five hours.

The cooked barbecue chicken.

With just a little bit of prep time, your entree will be cooked and the kitchen cool when you're ready to eat.  If you want to keep your kitchen completely cool, round out the meal with a green salad and some fresh microwave corn-on-the-cob.

© Margaret's Morsels

Christmas in July

It's July 25 and retailers, such as the home shopping channel QVC, are telling me it's Christmas in July.  I'm not ready to buy Christmas presents or decorations, but all this talk about Christmas makes me think about turkey and dressing.  What's a girl to do when she wants turkey and dressing in the middle of summer?  When the craving hits, I pull out a recipe I found years ago called Stuffed Breast of Turkey.  It satisfies the craving without heating up the kitchen roasting a turkey.

The only other ingredient you need is hot water.

Instead of a turkey or turkey breast, this recipe calls for turkey breast cutlets.  If the cutlets come four to a package, you can halve the recipe or buy two packages and cook the whole recipe.  The cutlets are stuffed with packaged cornbread stuffing and covered with jars of turkey gravy so there's no additional cooking required.  The cutlets cook in one hour, unlike a turkey which can take all afternoon.

I've been making this dish for a long time so I want to share some tips I've learned through trial and error over the years.

• You really do need to pound the cutlets.  If you omit this step, the cutlets won't be nearly as tender.

• If you can't find an 8 ounce package of stuffing, use half of a 16 ounce package   The larger package comes in handy if you need more stuffing for the top.

• If you spoon the stuffing down the center of the cutlets, it helps the stuffing stay in place when you roll the cutlets.

The stuffing on the turkey breast cutlet.

The stuffed and rolled turkey breast cutlet.

If you serve this dish to company, be prepared for a lot of accolades.  The dish is not only impressive looking, but looks as though you spent hours in the kitchen.  When you tell your guests it really wasn't that much trouble, they'll think you're being modest!

Stuffed Breast of Turkey

8 Servings

1 (8 oz.) pkg. cornbread stuffing, divided

2/3 cup hot water

2 Tbsp. butter or margarine

8 turkey breast cutlets, slightly pounded

2 (12 oz.) jars turkey gravy

In a large bowl, combine 2 cups stuffing, hot water and butter; mix well. Put an equal amount of the stuffing mixture in the center of each cutlet; roll each cutlet tightly.  Place cutlets seam side down in a greased 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish.  Pour gravy over the cutlets and sprinkle the remaining stuffing over the top.  Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 350° for 45 minutes.  Remove foil and bake 15 more minutes until heated through and no pink remains in the turkey.

© Margaret's Morsels