Maple-Cherry Glazed Chicken

You really can't get much easier then this. Inspired by Red Lobster's Maple Cherry Glazed Chicken, I searched and searched for a recipe but I needed something that could go in the crock pot because my husband is picky about chicken, it must be juicy, and boneless, and fall apart.

I guessed on the measurements because what I found was all over the map on that, fortunately not on ingredients.

I made my life easier by doing my own thing. I bought a jar of cherry preserves (instead of dried cherries and dicing them up); this also kept me from needing to add sugar and lemon juice to the recipe.

1/2 cup of maple syrup
1/2 a jar, or about 1/2 cup of cherry preserves
2-3 tablespoons of soy sauce
3-4 pieces of boneless, skinless chicken breast

*I dumped all of this into a gallon-size freezer bag and froze it until I wanted to cook it. You can do it either way, the only difference is cooking time.*
5 hours for thawed chicken, 6 hours for frozen.
Crock pot setting: Low heat.
I added a little bit of water (1-2 tablespoons) to the bag to get out the cherry pieces and syrup that were sticking to the inside of the bag and dumped that in too.
About 1 hour before you are ready to serve, stir 1-2 tablespoons of cornstarch with 1-2 tablespoons of water. Stir into sauce and stir occasionally for the next hour to help it thicken.

I served this on a bed of wild rice and with a side of vegetables.

Pumpkin Spice Granola

and it is gorgeous when stored in a glass jar.

I may never buy granola again, well unless I keep running out of this stuff. I made a single batch on Sunday. Wednesday, I made a double batch and was out again the following Sunday. Whoops.
This is stuff is like crack. 
So I stole borrowed the recipe from Joyfulhealthyeats when referred to her by my cousin, who insists that
everyone just triple this recipe.
You will eat it all.

I changed it slightly (adding 1 cup of Rice Crispies or (off-brand) Crispy Rice) and the instructions were switched a bit.


2 cups of old fashioned oats

1 cup of Rice Crispies
½ cup of sliced almonds
¼ cup of dried cranberries
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
1 teaspoon of pumpkin spice seasoning
½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon of salt
4 tablespoons of coconut oil
½ cup of maple syrup
¼ cup of pumpkin puree
1½ teaspoon of vanilla extract

Instructions

To get started, preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a large bowl mix, old fashioned oats, rice crispies and almonds. 

In small bowl, add pumpkin puree, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Whisk together. Add in brown sugar, pumpkin spice seasoning, ground cinnamon, and salt. (This is so it gets evenly distributed now rather then them all be at the bottom of the dry bowl. 

Pour the small bowl into the big bowl, toss to coat and make sure everything is covered. Now add in the dried cranberries. Toss again gently.

On a baking sheet, place either a silicon mat or parchment paper. Then spread the granola mixture across the entire pan.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, turning the granola every 10 minutes so it doesn't burn.

Remove from oven and let cool.

Enjoy, try not to eat it all at once.