Do Over: Crockpot Apricot Chicken

Remember when I waxed poetic about The Olive Garden’s Venetian Apricot Chicken?  I know I remember because, well, Apricot Chicken has become one of my favorites.  I can’t seem to get enough.  Especially when I cover it in Roma tomatoes and . . . oh goodness.  Hang on.  O.k., I’m back, I had to just run in the kitchen and whip up a batch.  Not really.  I’m just kidding.  I don’t have time for that right now, silly.

Speaking of not having time . . . a few days back I was in a time crunch; I needed dinner at the normal time and I knew we were going to fly in the door about 15 minutes before that and needed to leave again 12.2 minutes after dinner was on the table.  Don’t ya just love life in the fast lane?  Sounds like a crockpot kind of day to me. 

Thanks to my latest obsession with Apricot Chicken, I decided to get adventurous and try to make it in the crockpot.  There’s always peanut butter if it doesn’t turn out (apologies to my homies with nut allergies).  Plus, I had this super sad looking basil in the fridge and it really needed to be used up, because in a matter of hours it was going to be beyond use.  And that would be a shame! 

It took a little switching it up to make the recipe work, but the results were amazing.  And, at the risk of boring the crapola out of you all with the same recipe, I’m posting it here since this version is a lot more user friendly.

I will admit, I overcooked it.  My crockpot doesn’t cook super hot, but my Mother-In-Law’s crockpot apparently does, and I was using her crockpot since I confiscated it (it’s got a nifty lid with a strap thingy-ma-jigger and I really needed that strap).  I left the chicken on low for 7 hours, in a very hot crockpot, and it easily would have been ready in 5 hours.  It was still very tasty, but you’ll want to watch your time for optimus turnus-outis.  (That’s Angie-speak for “don’t let it burn or it might taste bad.”)

I served it along side some pasta tossed with pesto and some garlic bread.  Holy Chickens!  Good stuff!!

Crockpot Apricot Chicken

2 pounds boneless chicken breast, frozen
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons fresh basil, cut into small pieces
1 cup apricot preserves
1 cup water
2 teaspoons chicken base or bouillon

12 ounces (about 3 large) roma tomatoes, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon italian seasoning

Place chicken breasts into crockpot.
Combine garlic powder, salt, and black pepper and sprinkle over the top of the chicken.

In a small bowl, combine basil, apricot preserves, water, and chicken base and pour over the chicken.

Arrange tomatoes over the top of the chicken, sprinkle chopped garlic over the tomatoes, and sprinkle salt, pepper, garlic powder, and italian seasoning over the tomatoes.

Cook on low heat 5-7 hours, or until chicken is done.

 Crockpot Apricot Chicken

2 pounds boneless chicken breast, frozen
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons fresh basil, cut into small pieces
1 cup apricot preserves
1 cup water
2 teaspoons chicken base or bouillon

12 ounces (about 3 large) roma tomatoes, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon italian seasoning

Place chicken breasts into crockpot.
Combine garlic powder, salt, and black pepper and sprinkle over the top of the chicken.
In a small bowl, combine basil, apricot preserves, water, and chicken base and pour over the chicken.
Arrange tomatoes over the top of the chicken, sprinkle chopped garlic over the tomatoes, and sprinkle salt, pepper, garlic powder, and italian seasoning over the tomatoes.
Cook on low heat 5-7 hours, or until chicken is done.

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