Slow Cooker Bacon Ranch Chicken and Pasta ***

This was the second time I made this one, and I made so many changes that it's just easier for me to post the recipe as I did it.  The original recipe is in the link under the title, though.  I definitely did not come up with this amazing dish, so I want to give credit where credit is due. :-)

We loved it even more the second time.  It's just so simple to throw together.  It makes a ton, so you can easily halve the recipe for a smaller crock.  I always make extras so that we have enough for lunches or a weekend meal.  The addition of mushrooms this time around was just an afterthought to use up some that I had on hand, but I will never make it without them again!  Canned mushrooms wouldn't be the same, though, so if you don't have fresh on hand, I'd probably just leave them out.  I'm definitely making this again soon!

SLOW COOKER BACON RANCH CHICKEN AND PASTA
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ original recipe by FamilyFreshMeals)

4-5 chicken breasts, frozen
1 packet real bacon pieces
1 carton sliced fresh mushrooms
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
2 (1 oz) packets dry ranch dressing mix
2 (10.75 oz) cans condensed cream of chicken soup
2 cups sour cream
1 teaspoon of pepper
1/2 cup water
16 oz. angel hair spaghetti, cooked

Spray 6-quart slow cooker with cooking spray; place chicken breasts in cooker.
Combine remaining ingredients (except pasta) on top of chicken and stir well.
Cook on low 6-7 hours (until chicken is fully cooked).  Shred chicken and combine well; stir in cooked pasta and serve warm.


Previous posts:
4/15/15 ~ This wowed all of us.  It's unbelievably quick to throw together, but it tastes like you spent longer.  I doubled the recipe so that we'd have enough leftovers for lunches, but it was a little too much.  I think next time I'll multiply it by 1.5 instead.  I used the real bacon pieces in place of strips of bacon, since that's what I had on hand.  I also went with angelhair pasta in place of spaghetti, because that's just our preference.  It seemed senseless to me to dirty an extra dish, so when I threw it all together, I put the chicken in the bottom of the crock and mixed the other ingredients right on top of it.  Worked out perfectly.  I'll definitely be making this one again.