Slow Cooker Enchilada Stew

Now that there is a chill in the air, and fall is officially here, I can't wait to pull out the slow cooker for some tasty soups and stews!  This one is courtesy of frayedlacesracing.com.  Thanks, Laura!

Ingredients
Three chicken breast fillets (the thin cuts. Mine were flash frozen Purdue, bought from Costco, and I throw them in frozen)
Two cans Enchilada sauce (or make your own, see recipe below)
Two onions, chopped (or one if you don’t like a lot of onion. I do, and my breath is fantastic)
One can of black beans, drained
One bag frozen corn
One to two chopped red peppers, or one bag of frozen, chopped peppers
One bag of chopped broccoli

Directions
Layer the ingredients in the order written. Do not stir. This should fill your crockpot to the very brim. Still have room? Cram in more veggies! Set on low for 8 hours. Once done, shred the chicken and stir everything together. (I also recommend topping with gobs of Franks hot sauce)

Top with sour cream, or cheese, or cliantro, or tortilla chips. Or all four. Or don’t. It’s fantastic as is. Enjoy a tasty and incredibly healthy meal.

Enchilada sauce recipe
2 6oz. cans of tomato paste
2 cups chicken or veggie broth
2 T chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
Whisk everything together until mixed in your crockpot, then continue to layer ingredients as described above

Variations
Basically, this recipe is incredibly forgiving, as is most slow cooker “cooking”. Experiment with different veggies. In the past I’ve used spinach instead of broccoli, which gives it a creamier texture. The key, though, is to keep the broccoli or spinach on the top of everything so it doesn’t cook too much.

Stir Fried Broccoli

Ingredients
3-4 cups cut broccoli
Boiling salted water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1-2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh ginger
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preparation

1. To precook broccoli, drop into a large quantity of rapidly boiling salted water and cook until just tender when pierced with a fork (3-4 minutes).
2. Drain broccoli and cool quickly with cold water, drain it again and set aside.
3. Before starting to cook, prepare all remaining ingredients and have them within reach of your range.
4. Heat a 10 inch or larger frying pan or wok over high heat, then put in oil.
5. As soon as oil is hot enough to ripple when the pan is tipped, add ginger and garlic; quickly stir with a spatula until browning starts (about 30 seconds).
6. Put in the broccoli, water, sugar, and salt
7. Keep turning with a spatula until heated through (about 1-2 minutes).
8. Turn out onto a warm serving dish.