Chicken in a Pot - and Spiced-Up Leftovers

I love cooking at home. I always have. And, now that I am eating gluten-free (and experimenting with dairy-free), it is difficult to eat away from home, so I tend to avoid it. Several of my friends have told me that they do not know how I have time to cook at home for all my meals. The simple, honest truth is that I have found that I have plenty of time to cook at home both because it is a priority and because I have a couple of versatile recipes in my back pocket.

One of those recipes is "Chicken in a Pot." It is easy, simple, basic. My Grandma used to make it, my parents still make it, and I make it fairly often.

***Chicken in a Pot
1 - 3 pound whole chicken, or 3 pounds of cut up chicken
2 carrots, sliced
chopped onion (as much as desired)
2 celery stalks, chopped
Salt and pepper, as desired
1/2 cup water
1/2 to 1 tsp. basil

Place in a crockpot and cook for around 4 hours on high or 7-10 hours on low, or until chicken is done. Use 1 cup of water if cooking on high. Serve over rice, or with desired side dishes. In place of carrots, celery, and onion, you may substitute whatever fresh or frozen vegetables you would like to use.

Super easy. I love this recipe, and I go to it often. After we've eaten what we want from the chicken in a pot, I will cut the chicken into bite-size pices, or shred it up. Save the veggies, and pour the broth into a container. Cool the broth in the fridge, scrape the fat off the top, and freeze it for later use. You know the broth is gluten-free because you made it!

Now, let's take that dinner and turn it into another! First, make up some homemade Italian dressing. You won't use all of it for this recipe, but you can keep it in the fridge to use over salad or as a dip for veggies as a snack.

***Italian Dressing
1 cup olive or vegetable oil
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 Tbsp. dried minced onion pieces
1 tsp. dried basil leaves
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp.  ground mustard
1/2 tsp. dried oregano leaves
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
dash black pepper

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. This makes a little over 1 cup of Italian dressing.

And now, for the spiced-up leftover.

***Chicken and Spiral Pasta
1 pkg. (12 oz. dry) brown rice spiral pasta, or whatever shape you want (I used Tinkyada brand)
leftovers from Chicken in a Pot
5 Tbsp. Italian Dressing (or more if you really want to notice the flavor)

Heat water to a boil. Cook pasta until al dente, drain, and rinse with cold water. This helps the pasta keep its shape.  Heat up leftover Chicken in a Pot. Stir chicken and veggies into noodles. Add Italian Dressing and mix well.

Voila! Dinner! This made so much for me tonight that I think I have leftovers for tomorrow's lunch too! This time around I took "Easy Street" and used a bag of frozen peas and carrots when I made Chicken in a Pot. Worked out just fine!

My kids and husband love this recipe. I hope you will love it too!