Showing posts with label gardein. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gardein. Show all posts

Crockpot Wednesday: Chick'n & Artichoke Cheesy Pasta

May 18, 2011 chicken , crockpot 0 Comments


Rating: 2/5

Coming up with a recipe each week for Crockpot Wednesday has proven to be more of a challenge than I anticipated. First is the fact that a good blogger should test a recipe at least twice before posting. I rarely have the opportunity to do that and therefore appreciate feedback if something did or did not work out for you. Secondly, I'm single and so I end up with a lot of food for little ol' me! Between those reasons I try to pick recipes that will have high success and will be something I'm willing to eat for days. Most of the meals get packaged up and frozen for me to take to work.  I still get sick of them, though, even with rotating through them.

This week I wanted something simple and I wanted to try to incorporate a Gardein product as I am still eating vegetarian this May. I chose a cheesy chicken artichoke pasta. Thing is, sometimes you wonder about these so-called slow cooker recipe. Is it something that should be done in a crockpot? Or is it something that is better to be done on the stovetop?

In this case, I'd say the latter, especially if the chicken and the noodles are already cooked.  If you use raw chicken breasts, then yes, it does well for the crockpot. But if you use fake chicken (Gardein) or cooked rotisserie chicken leftovers, you might as well just do it on the stove.

So I leave you with this recipe with those little caveats. I will admit that I goofed and put the pasta in to cook the whole day when I was supposed to put it at THE END, thus the rather gloppy mess. It still tasted good. After all, it all ends up in the same place, right?

Note:  I'll be busy with a reunion over Memorial Day weekend. So the next two Crockpot Wednesdays are a bit up in the air. They might be reposts or links to other sites.



Chick'n & Artichoke Cheesy Pasta
adapted from about.com
  • 1 1/2 lbs boneless chicken breast, cubed or 3 pieces of Gardein Chick'n Scallopini, cubed
  • 4 oz roasted red peppers, chopped
  • 1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas
  • 1 can (15oz) artichoke hearts, quartered
  • 8 oz process American cheese
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 can fat free cream of mushroom soup
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • 4 cups hot cooked pasta ( 8 to 10 oz)
  • salt & pepper to taste

Combine chicken, peppers, peas, artichokes, Havarti cheese, Worcestershire sauce, and soup in the crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. About 15 minutes before serving, add cheddar cheese and hot cooked pasta. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
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Vegetarian May

May 07, 2011 gardein , vegetarian 0 Comments


We are week into May and a week into my eating vegetarian. No, it's not something permanent. It's more like an experiment. I want to see how not eating meat might make me feel health and energy-wise. It's not been too difficult at home and bringing lunch to work. The real challenge is going out to eat with friends.

I am one of those people, maybe like you, that has had to have some sort of meat with every lunch or dinner. Even in salads I want something - whether it's chicken, some shrimp, or slices of steak. Pork is my favorite meat of all. LOVE pork in all forms. But the medical and nutrition community has said for many years that we need to make meat the side dish and beans or vegetables the main part of every meal. 

At first I contemplated going vegan for the month, but decided that would be just too drastic a step to take. I'll try that soon, I'm sure, but for now I wanted to just stick to eliminating meat to see how I do.

I figured the route for me, Ms. Meat Eater, is to try the fake meat approach to ease me into the vegetarian meals. Ellen Degeneres is a vegan and on her show she's been challenging people to try the vegan lifestyle. I was watching one of her shows where a family was trying vegan and using Gardein products to help. 

Gardein makes healthy protein alternatives. You can call them fake meat if you wish, since they are meant to take the place of meat in your meals with names such as Chick'n Scallopini and Beefless Burger. The products consist of a blend of grains, fiber, and soy to create dense pieces that have a consistency as close to meat as possible. I contacted Gardein and they were kind enough to send me some coupons so I could get a few different products to try.


So far I'm really liking the Chick'n Scallopini. They come frozen and you saute them in a skillet or pan to cook them. I've been using them as a substitute for chicken in my salads for lunch. For dinner, I've cooked them up in some butter before adding some lemon juice and capers. I serve it all up with some steamed asparagus for a simple, yet delicious meal.

Now I must admit that if pork is my favorite meat, chicken is my least favorite. Having these Chick'n items has been an easy change for me. They are close enough to chicken that I don't really notice the difference. I've also tried the Chipotle Lime Crispy Fingers which are baked in the oven. Nice and crispy. I still have to try the beef alternative items.

The next few weeks will have more posts about my trying vegetarian. So far, it's not been too difficult.


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