Castellon's Kitchen: February 2015

After a few months of no blog cooking, I finally made some time to cook. Yay! The weatherman had threatened rain last Saturday, which kept me home and wanting to cook. My inspiration for this recipe came from Crockpot Salsa Chicken. You know the recipe, chicken breasts and a jar of salsa...so simple and so good! It's a staple in my house. My girlfriend, Gina had made it the other night while I was over and it inspired me to try an Italian version of shredded chicken. Even though it never rained last weekend, the weather was cool and cloudy. I threw these amazing sandwiches together with a few items I had on hand; chicken breasts, red and green bell peppers and some leeks were the basic ingredients. I also had some Italian dressing mix and some pepperoncini as well. Throw the whole thing in the Crockpot with some garlic, basil, butter and white wine and you're in business. Toast up these soft Ciabatta rolls with fresh basil butter, melted mozzarella cheese and top with this amazing chicken...yum! Enjoy!

Ciabatta Chicken Sandwiches with Peppers and Leeks
Makes 8-10 sandwiches

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 small leeks, white and light green parts, sliced and well rinsed (about 1 cup)
1 green bell pepper, diced (1 cup)
1 red bell pepper, diced (1 cup)
3-4 cloves of garlic, sliced
1/4 c sliced pepperoncini
1 packet of dry Italian Dressing mix
1/2 t dried basil
3 T of butter, unsalted, divided
1/4 cup white wine or water

Mozzarella cheese
8 Ciabatta rolls
Basil Butter (1/4 cup butter, softened with 4 leaves fresh basil, finely chopped)

Prepare all vegetables. Add about half of the leeks, peppers and garlic to the bottom of the slow cooker. Add the chicken and sprinkle with half of the Italian Dressing mix. Top chicken with the remaining vegetables and sprinkle with the rest of the Italian dressing mix. Add pepperocinis, dried basil and place 1 tablespoon of butter on the top of each vegetable covered chicken breast. Add wine and cook on high for 5 hours. Shred chicken. Set aside while you prepare the basil butter and the rolls.

Spread basil butter on both sides of Ciabatta rolls and add mozzarella cheese to the top bun. Place under a broiler to melt the cheese and toast the buttered side for about 3 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
Remove from the broiler, pile high with shredded chicken and serve hot. Enjoy!