Southwest Chicken Spaghetti - Slow Cooker Meal

I'm addicted to Pinterest.

I admit it.  It's really out of control.  

I pin...and pin...and pin all these recipes that have me drooling that my "to make" board is loading up so much I'll never make all these wonderful dishes in my lifetime.

I really need to limit myself.  Truly....I found this out the other day when I was looking for a recipe that I pinned last week and couldn't find it.  I had pinned so many other "to make" recipes after it that it was buried.  Buried I tell you.  So far down there that I would swear I pinned that months ago. One would think these are gold rather than recipes.  I'm a Pinterest hoader, that's what I am!   I think I'm wasting more time looking for things I know I pinned. This is NOT good.  Do you know the feeling?  Tell me I'm not alone.

So I decided to stop pinning items "to make" and get in there and make some of them.  Today's dish is something I've been wanting to try for quite a while now.  It's a convenient slow cooker meal which is a time saver on the weekends, or during the week when I want to come home and not have to cook.  Even in the summer the slow cooker can be your friend.  The other plus is that this is a spaghetti dish. Everyone loves spaghetti right?  You'll love this southwest variation.  It has such great flavors. 

I adapted the recipe from this blog (Lauren's Latest).  I love that is so easy to make, basically just dump and go.  The only thing you need to do is cook the spaghetti about 45 min prior to your eating time, which covers your cooking time and melding time with the chicken and the sauce.  So gooey and yummy!

The result is one Pinterest "to make" recipe down!  Woohoo!  ....and another item that I want to add to my repertoire.

Enjoy! 

Southwest Chicken Spaghetti

adapted from Lauren's Latest Crock-Pot cheesy Chicken Spaghetti

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

1/2 cup diced yellow onion
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 small can mild diced green chiles
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt & pepper, to taste
2 chicken breasts {about 1 lb.}
1 can cream of mushroom soup
3/4-1 lb. cooked spaghetti
2-3 cups grated cheddar cheese
a few splashes chicken stock {optional}

Directions:

Place chicken in the bottom of the crock-pot.  Add the onion, bell peppers, green chiles, cumin, garlic powder, salt, pepper, mushroom soup and 1 cup of grated cheese on top of the chicken.   Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low 7-8 hours or until chicken is fully cooked. Remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to the pot.   

Cook your spaghetti according to the package directions. Add the cooked noodles to the crock-pot and top with remaining cheese. Toss to coat pasta in sauce and melt cheese, adding in a few splashes of chicken stock if necessary to get sauce consistency you want. Cook another 20-30 minutes on low and serve.

Here's her freezer directions:
**Freezer directions: Place onion, bell peppers, green chiles, cumin, garlic powder, salt, pepper, chicken, mushroom soup and 1 cup of grated cheese together in a large plastic freezer bag. Seal and freeze. To cook, defrost in fridge, place in crock-pot and cook according to directions listed above.