White Bean and Chicken Stew

This is a new recipe I modified from my Better Homes Cookbook. It's a slow cooker recipe, which I love, especially on cold rainy days like today.  It's wonderful to fill the house with the aromas of stew.  It has a great depth of flavor and richness without being too heavy.  Next time I want to try adding a can of hominy to this and topping it with some fresh chopped cilantro. Let me know what variation you try and what you think! We served ours up with some warm, toasty cornbread. Yum.

Recipe: (serves 6)
Ingredients:
2 (15 ounce) cans white (cannellini) beans, rinsed and drained
6-7 chicken breast tenders or 2 breasts (okay to add frozen chicken)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 pound small dutch yellow potatoes
2 ounces (1/2 of small 4oz can) diced green chilies
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
4 cups low sodium chicken Broth
Jack cheese, shredded, for garnish
Avocado, sliced, for garnish

Directions:

1. In a 4 quart Slow Cooker combine the drained beans, chicken, onion, bell pepper, potatoes, green chilies, garlic, cumin, salt and Italian Seasoning. Stir in the chicken broth.

2. Cover and cook on low heat setting for 8 hours or on high heat setting for 4-5 hours until chicken is cooked completely. Pull out chicken tenders and shred them, return to stew.

3. I "hit" this soup with my immersion blender for 2 seconds, literally two seconds, no longer.  This thickens it up while maintaining the great texture and leaving some whole beans and pieces of chicken and vegetables.  If you don't have an immersion blender, remove about 1 1/2 cups of the stew and pulse it lightly in a blender or food processor then return to the stew.  Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into soup bowls and top with cheese and avocado if desired. Serve with cornbread on the side.