::A few days after Christmas, my husband and I found ourselves in the Walgreen’s store near our home. Our main purpose there was to drop off film for developing, but of course we looked around as we left the store. On display was a variety of kitchen appliances, all for $9.99. I was drawn in by the miniature varieties: a crock pot, a food processor and an electric hand-blender. The products seemed sturdy and were definitely attractive in appearance – off-white in color with beige accents. I purchased all three items and decided to try out the crock pot first.

 

The crock pot (with a 1.5 quart capacity), comes from the Kitchen Gourmet although I have been unable to find a company web site for them. The cooking part of the crock is removable, made from ceramic in an off-white color. The lid is glass with a medium-gray handle, and the electric cord reaches a fair distance. Around noon I decided to start dinner in the mini-crock, but since it was so late in the day I had to settle for using canned ingredients. The recipe below was created as I went along, but turned out rather well:

 

Quick Chicken Stew

1 can Hormel chunk breast of chicken in water (10 oz.); keep juice

1 can whole white (new) potatoes (15 oz.); drained and cut in half

1 can mushrooms (pieces and stems, 7 oz.); drained

1 can cream of mushroom soup (10.5 oz.)

¼ soup-can of water (or more depending on stew consistency)

½ bag frozen peas & carrots (from 16 oz. bag)

Dried minced garlic to taste

Lemon-pepper seasoning to taste

Paprika to taste

Seasoning salt to taste

 

Turn the crock pot to high setting. Add the canned chicken breast with liquid; drain canned potatoes, cut in half and mix with chicken. Add the drained mushroom pieces and cream of mushroom soup; mix well. Stir in frozen peas and carrots, and then add the seasonings. Pour in ¼ soup-can of water, adding more to achieve a stew-like consistency. Mix well and cover. Cook for two hours or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Adjust the crock pot setting to low if the stew starts to boil. Tips: Serve with brown rice or a green salad.

 

Voila! Dinner is served without too much mess and fuss, and the stew tastes divine.