Slow Cooker Chicken and Dressing – #ReadingFoodie: Happiness Sold Separately

This past weekend was a rainy, sloppy mess. It was the kind of weekend you just want to curl up and read a book. So I did just that.

I went searching through the hundreds of books I have in my bedroom that I have yet to read. This one by Lolly Winston, Happiness Sold Separately, called to me. I’m not sure why books that feature a cheating husband call to me but they do. And I get so angry with each and every one I read.

I get angry at the man who cheated, the mistress, and sometimes the cheated on wife too. This book was no different.

Ted and Elinor Mackey have been trying for a couple of years to get pregnant. They’ve gone through all the in-vitro treatments with no luck. Elinor is so hurt and dismayed because she wants a child so bad that she ends up unknowingly pushing her husband away. Enter the young, nubile trainer at the gym who makes Ted feel wanted and needed.

Once Elinor finds out about Gina, of course, Ted is remorseful and will never see her again. By the way, I love the way Elinor confronted them. Elinor leaves town to spend time with her mother who just had knee surgery but comes back to a relieved Ted. Cue Gina’s never before spoken about son, Toby, who grabs at Ted’s heart. As soon as Elinor learns that Ted is spending time with Toby, she leaves Ted. And, of course, this gives Ted an excuse to start seeing Gina again.

Circumstances bring Ted and Elinor back together again but an accident opens Elinor’s eyes to the fact Ted is in love with Gina. Call me heartless, but I have no sympathy for Ted or Gina. I felt for Elinor and just wanted her life to fall into place and for her to find what she was missing in her life.

So much happens throughout the book that shows Ted is torn between these two women he loves. I was so disappointed in the ending because it left so many questions unanswered. Even with that, it is a good look into marriage, how infertility affects it and how things can break down in a marriage.

Now to the recipe. This dish was not in the book but the weather while I was reading it called me to make it. So I did. Cornbread dressing is my absolute favorite fall time dish. It’s perfect with chicken, turkey, or pork chops. And it’s not just for a holiday meal. Once the weather starts getting cooler, I immediately start craving cornbread dressing. This is an easy way to get it all cooked up as the family goes to church or watches the football games on Sundays. Perfect for Sunday Supper.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Dressing

Ingredients:

2 boxes Jiffy Corn Bread
2 eggs
2/3 c milk
4 Tbsp margarine
1 1/2 c yellow onion, finely diced
1 1/2 c celery, finely diced
1 – 10 3/4 oz can Cream of chicken
Salt, pepper and poultry seasoning, to taste
1 1/2 c Chicken Broth
3 cooked Rotisserie chicken leg quarters, shredded

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Make Jiffy cornbread according to package instructions, using eggs and milk. Prepare in a 9×13 baking dish. Bake for 18-20 minutes.
Note: you can make the cornbread the day before. If not, let cool before making dressing.

Add butter to a large sauté pan and let melt. Add onions and celery. Sauté until onions become translucent, 7-10 minutes.

Crumble cornbread into a large mixing bowl. Add onions and celery mixture. Season with salt, pepper and a small amount of poultry seasoning.

Add cream of chicken and 1 cup of chicken broth. Mix together.

Taste to ensure cornbread is seasoned to your liking. If not, add more seasonings being careful not to add too much poultry seasoning.

Spray slow cooker with Pam cooking spray or use a liner. Place 1/3 of cornbread dressing in the bottom of the slow cooker. Add half of shredded chicken on top of dressing. Add 1/4 c chicken broth on top of chicken. Add another layer of dressing and chicken. Add 1/4 c chicken broth on top of chicken. Top with remaining cornbread dressing.

Let cook on high for four hours. Mix together after each hour to ensure moist dressing.