Crockpot comfort, or, slow cooker chicken stroganoff: a recipe

All this crisp fall air could only mean one thing: it's time to break out the crockpot, friend to busy home cooks everywhere!

With just a wee bit of time and effort in the morning, you can have a lovely meal waiting for you at the end of the day. It's nearly effortless. It's like having your own personal chef who has dinner waiting for you when you get home. It's like ... like being OPRAH!

Well, except for the home in Hawaii and craploads of cash. But close!

This recipe for slow cooker chicken stroganoff has unknown origins. I based it off a random recipe I found via the web a couple of years ago and all I have is my own smudgy printout, so I regret that I cannot attribute it correctly. But it's goooooooood ... rich, creamy comfort food that even kids love, despite the monochromatic presentation.

And yes, like all good 20th-century casseroley-type dishes, it involves cream-of-whatevs condensed soup. I'm not going to judge you if you opt to buy a can, but you might want to try making it yourself: it's super easy!

Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff

Ingredients
1-1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup white wine
1 (.7-oz) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix
6-8 oz. reduced-fat cream cheese (NOT fat-free -- eeew!)
1 (10.75-oz) can reduced-fat/lower-sodium/"healthier" condensed cream-of-chicken soup or one portion homemade cream-of-chicken soup

Directions
Put butter, chicken, mushrooms, wine and dressing mix in the slow cooker. Mix all ingredients together. Cook on low for 5-6 hours.
Add cream cheese and soup, stir and cook on high for another 1/2 hour or until heated through.
Serve over egg noodles.

Notes:

• PLEASE read the ingredient labels carefully on the dressing mix and soup you buy. Some (but not all) brands add MSG. I generally use Good Seasons dressing mix and Campbell's "Healthy Request" soup.
• I have found that 8 oz. of cream cheese makes this dish wicked creamy -- a little too creamy for my taste, so I've dropped it back to about 6 oz. But if you like it creamy, go for the full 8 oz.
• Try whole-wheat noodles!