Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic

Before I tell you about this recipe, let me share a little but about my unhealthy obsession with the crock pot. It's been a constant battle for me, because I love the crock pot's abilities. Slow cooking offers moist meals, little work and prep, simple steps, and lots of flavor. But every time I thought about cooking something in the crock pot a little voice in my head said, "You are cheating!" I felt that real cooking takes more time, more effort, more work and using the crock pot gave me that guilty feeling like I am taking the cop-out; the easy route. It's the same feeling I have when I get a craving for Kraft Mac and Cheese. When I was younger, I was a super picky eater, the worst you could find, and I lived on Kraft Mac and Cheese. Nowadays, I'd gladly prefer my Grandma's Mac and Cheese or Italian Mac and Cheese, but there's still a place in my heart for that blue box. Well, I've decided that this year I am resolving my battle with the crock pot and putting it to good use more often, because this dinner was amazing! It's a new favorite for sure. Even with its minimal effort, this dish was so yummy and full of flavor! The slow roasted garlic gave it a more mild flavor, and the meat was fall-off-the-bone perfect! I will say peeling the 40 cloves of garlic was let's say a but time consuming. Next time, I may purchase pre-peeled garlic...

3 and 1/2 lbs of chicken pieces, I used leg quarters

3 tbsp olive oil

40 cloves of garlic, peeled

2 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp rosemary

1 tsp basil

1 tsp paprika

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp flour

1. Rinse chicken pieces in water and pat dry with paper towels. Season with salt and pepper

2. Drizzle one tbsp olive oil in bottom of 5 quart crock pot. Place chicken in crock pot.

3. Drizzle with remaining olive oil and sprinkle rosemary, basil, and paprika. Then add the garlic cloves.

4. Let cook on low setting for 6 hours. Stir the garlic cloves and chicken around once halfway through cooking.

5. About half an hour before the chicken was finished cooking, remove about ten or twelve roasted garlic cloves and mash them with a fork, set aside.

6. Near the end of the cooking time, remove the juices from the bottom of the crock pot with a ladle and fill a small sauce pot. Add about half of the smashed garlic and one tbsp of butter and one tbsp of flour to make a yummy gravy. I also added the other half of the mushed garlic to the mashed potatoes to make garlic mashed potatoes.

Source: Adapted from A Year of Slow Cooking