Crockpot roasted chicken and mushroom risotto

Yesterday's Lentils were a huge hit with Miss E and using the crockpot definitely free'd up a lot of stirring at the stove time. Now, my daughter is an Angel, but when it is time for Momma to head into the kitchen to make dinner, she turns into a monster and cooking can become quite stressful, I love her curiosity for food, and so recently I have taken to pouring Cheerios into a large cooking bowl and giving her a wooden spoon to stir whilst mommy cooks. 

I love Risotto but I hate making it, all that stirring at the hot stove is just too time consuming especially when E has a meltdown, or needs a diaper change or wants to be picked up. It's a dish you kind of have to babysit and frankly I don't have the time.

I saw the delectable Ina Garten make a oven baked risotto and I thought, hmmmm, why not use my crockpot instead.

Recipe

2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 cup of arborio or risotto rice

4/5 chicken thighs (one small grocery package)

3 cloves of garlic crushed

1 small onion finely chopped

4 cups of low sodium organic chicken broth

1 cup of white wine (optional) or water d. 

2 cups of baby portobello mushrooms

2 teaspoons of salt

1 teaspoon of black pepper
1/2 tsp chopped rosemary

1 handful of fresh chopped parsley or 2 teaspoons of dried.

1 cup of Grated parmesan cheese

Add the olive oil to the crockpot and stir in the garlic, and arborio rice, stirring well until the grains are well coated with the oil. Add the onions, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper. Add the white wine/ water and three cups of chicken broth. If using dried parsley add this now, if using fresh parsley add at the end of cooking for a fresh amd bright flavour. Stir the risotto well and cover, cook on a low heat for 1 1/2 hours. Preheat oven to 425 degrees, season the chicken liberally with the remaining teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper and bake for 30 minutes, after 30 minutes add the sliced mushrooms to the baking dish stir and coat with the chicken juices and return to the oven for 15 minutes. The chicken should read an internal temperature of 160degrees Fahrenheit. Allow the chicken to cool, after the 1 1/2 hour cooking time add the remaking cup of stock and cook for an additional 30 minutes, shred or chop the roasted chicken and add to the risotto along with the oven roasted mushrooms and pan juices. Before serving stir the risotto for 5 minutes to encourage the startches to release, giving a creamy consistency and add the Parmesan cheese.