Chicken Stew

You know how you get some dish in your mind and you obsess over it until you eat it? Well, I started obsessing over chicken noodle soup or chicken & dumplings, but with Tom being on a low-carb diet, I can't make them. So, I got creative and came up with this concoction. It was delicious and Tom loved it, too!

 Ingredients:
1 whole chicken, at least 5 lbs.
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 pkgs. (16 oz/1 lb) packages Tuscan-Style vegetables (I used Safeway Kitchens brand) with broccoli, red peppers, mushrooms & onions
1 yellow onion, chopped
6 ½ cups chicken stock & broth
½ cup heavy cream
½ teaspoon thyme
2 Tablespoons parsley (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Roast chicken in a cooking bag following cooking directions for the cooking bag (necessary to generate lots of chicken stock). Boil the gizzards and either toss or give to the dogs. Shred cooked chicken. Retain stock, mix with the water that you boiled the gizzards in, and add canned chicken broth to make 6 ½ cups.

Sauté chopped onion and Tuscan vegetables in butter and olive oil over medium heat. Stir in thyme then pour in chicken broth. Add shredded chicken. Bring to a boil. Cover pot and simmer for 20 minutes.

Pour heavy cream into the pot. Add minced parsley if using. Cover pot and continue to simmer for 15 minutes.

Serve with fresh baked bread (but don't let Tom eat it).  

Substitutions:
You can use a rotisserie chicken instead of a fresh chicken, but you will lose the tasty stock. You can use canned chicken stock instead, but it really is not as good. But, it's a lot easier and faster, so go for it!