Serve Goblin's Delight Tonight

By D. Kubovy

Halloween night is an exciting, fun event for the whole family. There are costumes, loads of candy, and the fun of scurrying around from house to house in your neighborhood. But don't forget -- trick-or-treating is hard work! Depending on where you live, the temperatures can get chilly, and you can log a lot if miles. What better way to wind up the festivities than by getting back to the house, shucking off the masks, and sitting down to a hearty, warm, delicious meal?

We've got a tasty recipe for chicken noodle stew with sweet potatoes that can be prepared Halloween morning, then cooked in a slow-cooker until evening. It's a ghoulish delight that will revive your family as they take stock of the take from their rounds.

Chicken Noodle Stew with Sweet Potatoes

What You Need:

• 6 boneless, skinless chicken thigh cutlets
• 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 medium onion, cut into thin wedges
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 1/2 cups water
• 2 packages (2.8 oz. each) 98% fat free baked chicken flavor ramen noodle soup

Preparation Time: 12 Minutes
Cooking Time: 7 Hours
Servings: 6

What to Do:

• Wash hands.
• Rinse chicken with cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
• In 2 1/2 to 3 quart slow cooker, layer potatoes, onion and chicken.
• Sprinkle with thyme and pepper.
• Add bay leaves.
• In small bowl, blend 1 cup water and seasoning packets from ramen noodles (reserve noodles); pour mixture over chicken and vegetables.
• Add remaining 2 1/2 cups water. Cover.
• Cook at low setting at least 7 hours or until vegetables and chicken are tender.
• Insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken. Internal temperature should read 180°F.
• Remove and discard bay leaves.
• Break ramen noodles up, stir into crockpot.
• Cover, cook on High 10 minutes until noodles are tender, stirring gently once.
• Gently stir before serving to shred chicken and mix well.

Some families had trouble finding the equipment needed for this recipe: "I haven't used a crock pot in 20 years!" noted a Westchester mom. Nonetheless, the families that tried the recipe found it successful. "The preparation was easy," said tester Julie Shaw, who also suggested some improvements: "I added 1 chopped large carrot and 1 chopped stalk of celery. It's my training, I can't help it." The Shaw family added some extra chicken to the mix -- "2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts" -- while the Berning family recommended substituting "white meat for some or all of the dark meat."

Kids who tried the stew found it to be a new experience. Sweet potatoes were particularly special for our panel kids: "My 5-year-old daughter thought she was eating odd-tasting carrots, which she loves, rather than sweet potatoes, which she does not, and was shocked when told," said one parent. The Shaw family concurred: "We don't eat a lot of sweet potatoes in my house, so it was a new taste sensation for my kids. We do, however, eat a lot of ramen, [as] I'm preparing my kids for college."

Despite the unfamiliarity, the dish was well-received by most testers, especially parents. "I love sweet potatoes and their highly nutritious profile," said Mary Dell from Mamaroneck, NY. "The broth and noodles were interesting and it seemed to all work together." Another mom noted that her kids "were willing to try the dish, and all liked it, but they eventually ate around the sweet potatoes." No matter -- according to this mom, the meal was eaten up anyway: "my dog scarfed up the remains."

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