Moroccan Chicken

This past weekend I went grocery shopping without much of a plan as to what I was going to make. Usually I plan out meals, make a list, and then go pick stuff up. But this time I figured I'd just see what the store had to offer and go from there. As I've been doing a lot of slow-cooker stuff lately, your typical slow cooker veggies (onions, celery, green peppers) are always a good bet. However, when I got to the store they had some big artichokes on sale! This got me thinking. Maybe I could do something with them? Then I remembered going to a Morrocan place for dinner and having "Chicken with Artichokes". Sure... I could come up with something. And it would be different - yeah, I get bored with the same old thing all the time. So I gave it a whirl and it turned out pretty good!

This dish is going to be layered in the slow cooker as described below:

• 1 Large Onion - cut in 1/8ths, vertically, and then pull the outer layer of skin and cut off the top, but leave the bottom in tact so that it stays togeter.
  
• 6 chicken breasts. I used boneless/skinless - but you could easily use the other kind.
  
• 2 tsp 5 spice powder
  
• 1 Head of garlic - peel the cloves (about 15)
  
• 1/4 C Honey
  
• 1/4 C Pistachio nuts
  
• 2 Artichokes - cut in 1/2, Rinsed, Salted
  
• 1 15.5 oz can Garbonzo Beans
  
• 2 14 oz can's chicken stock
  
• Water

I wasn't sure if the artichokes would "steam" if I just placed them on top and didn't have liquid to cover them - so I packed on this in as well as I could and then added the chicken stock. Then I added more water (about another 14 oz) until the water was close to the top of the slow cooker. Turns out smaller artichokes might have worked better - but it all turned out.

I thought it was really good. The onions really picked up the flavor of the garlic and honey. The chicken was a bit dry (as boneless/skinless in a slow cooker turns out to be with a liquid sauce) - but I let the liquid sit a few minutes after pulling everything off and then skimmed some off the top and used that as a sauce to dip my chicken in.

Jaime thought it was really good too. Tina said, "Well I don't hate it...". She isn't a big fan of "different" - but said she doesn't mind if I cook that way once in a while. :)

I served it with couscous. It had a great taste and artichokes are always fun to eat. I'll definately make it again, the next time I'm in the mood for something "different".