Slow Cooker Attempt #1

I finally did it. I busted out the slow cooker and made my first CrockPot meal.

I used Real Simple's Slow Cooker Chicken and Pasta Soup, and I would have to say that it was (mostly) a success!

I tried to be as efficient as possible with this meal, so the night before I chopped the carrots and celery. I just used what I had in the firdge, so I ended up using a mix of regular carrots and baby carrots. I also used more than the recommended amount of celery because, hey, I like celery!

The next morning, I added the chicken, carrots, celery, halved onion, water, and spices to the crock pot and turned it on low. Easy as pie. 

After about seven hours, I removed the onion and chicken. The recipe told me to discard the onion, but I thought it would make a fine addition to the soup, so I cut it up and put it back in the CrockPot. Note to self: cut up the onion before-hand next time. Chopping an onion that's been in a slow cooker all day is not an easy feat! 

I added the alphabet pasta to the slow cooker while I shredded the chicken. I added the chicken back to the pot, added some parsley, and voila, dinner is served. 

As you can see from this picture, it's pretty hard to find the alphabet pasta. The recipe only called for half a cup, so next time, I think I would double that to get a little more carbs into the meal. There was also something missing. I think I would have added a sweet spice, such as rosemary, to the mix to give it an alternative to the very savory taste.