Hawaiian Chicken

Blue Pool on Maui, the ocean side - most beautiful place I
have ever been in my life!!

Hawaii, how I love you!  Brian and I spent our honeymoon on Maui and fell in love with the island.  Not only is it a beautiful place, but the general atmosphere is food for the soul.  Between the gorgeous views everywhere you look to the wonderful foods, Maui is a wonderful place to be.

Now, how a trip to Florida is never complete without an orange, a trip to Hawaii isn't complete without a pineapple. Therefore, when I decided on making Hawaiian chicken I new it was going to need pineapple to go along as well.  I remember the luau's having all this wonderful food - purple taro bread, macadamia nuts in all variations, kalua pua (roasted pork straight from an imu), or nice purple sweet potatoes.  Everything, to me, had a rich sweet taste - and that is what I was trying to recreate.

This recipe definitely has a sweet taste.  Brian enjoyed it, but I thought it needed to be dialed back a bit.  Even though, every bite reminded me of being on that beautiful island!! - a three year old can handle a 12 hour flight right?!

Hawaiian Chicken

• 12-16 oz Chicken Breast, boneless/skinless and cut into tenders
• 1/2-3/4 c BBQ Sauce (I used Smokehouse Sweet and Tangy)
• 1 c Pineapple Chunks
• 1/2 c Pineapple Juice (from the can of chunks if you used canned)
• 15-20 Maraschino Cherries, de-stemmed
• 1 T Cornstarch 

1. Spray your crock pot with non-stick spray and lay the chicken tenders on the bottom.  
2. In a bowl, combine the BBQ sauce and pineapple juice.  Pour the mixture over the chicken.
3. Add the pineapple chunks and cherries on top and cover.
4. Cook on high for 1.5 - 2.5 hours or low for 3-4 hours.  (I almost always cook on low and check them at the 3 hour mark.)
5. Remove the chicken from the crockpot and set aside to cut into pieces. 
6. Add the cornstarch into the watery BBQ sauce mix and mix well until all the cornstarch is dissolved.  Turn the crockpot back on high for 10 minutes.
7. While the sauce is thickening cut the chicken into pieces.  
8. Once the sauce has thickened - about ten minutes - add the chicken back in and stir to coat the pieces evenly.  Serve right away or leave your crockpot on warm until ready to serve.
9. Enjoy!

As I said earlier, I think the sweetness in this is a little overpowering.  I think the next time I will try "making my own" BBQ like consistency.  If you try it let me know your thoughts!