Slow Cooker Cacciatore-Style Chicken

My sister picked this recipe out for us to make when she was down visiting last weekend.  I've already posted a recipe for chicken cacciatore in the past.  And though I love my old recipe and find it a bit more flavourful than this one, the one I am posting today fits much more with my hectic lifestyle these days. 

You basically just chop up the vegetables, throw them into the crockpot with the chicken and other ingredients and plug it in.  And if you happen to buy your mushrooms pre-sliced like I did, this really only takes minutes to put together.  You also get a good portion of yummy cooked veggies out of it.  This is so quick to put together than I've already made it a second time in the past week.

2 C sliced fresh mushrooms
1 C sliced celery
1 C chopped carrot
2 medium onions, cut into wedges
1 green, yellow, or red sweet pepper, cut into strips
4 cloves garlic, minced
12 chicken drumsticks, skinned (about 3 1/2 lbs)
1/2 C chicken broth
1/4 C dry white wine
2 tbsp. quick cooking tapioca
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 14-1/2 oz. can diced tomatoes
1/3 C tomato paste

1.  In a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker combine mushrooms, celery, carrots, onions, sweet pepper and garlic.  Cover vegetables with the chicken.  Add broth, wine, tapioca, bay leaves, oregano, sugar, salt and black pepper.  

2.  Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 6 to 7 hours or on high-heat setting for 3 to 3 1/2 hours.

3.  Remove chicken and keep warm (place in 200 degree Farenheit oven).  Remove bay leaves and discard.  If using low-heat setting, turn to high-heat setting.  Cover and cook 15 minutes longer on high-heat setting.  

4.  Serve with hot cooked pasta or rice.  To serve, spoon vegetable mixture over chicken and pasta.

Makes 6 servings.   

Difficulty level: easy 

Taken from: Better Homes and Gardens Biggest Book of Slow Cooker Recipes.