Crock-pot chicken and eggplant parmigiana and spaghetti squash noodles

Let me tell you about my grandmother. She's awesome. She makes spaghetti sauce from a recipe she got from an Italian neighbor when she lived up north. It is delicious, and it makes a TON. So, when we make spaghetti in my family, it lasts us forever. Everyone takes leftovers (which includes not only the sauce, but meatballs, sausage, chicken, and porkchops) and those leftovers also last forever.

Usually I use my sauce for Baked Macaroni (recipe later this semester), but I got a crock-pot recipe book for Christmas and had to try this recipe. It was good. Really good. And easy. Add in spaghetti squash noodles (another recipe I really wanted to try) and you just cannot beat this dinner.

Let me just emphasize how RIDICULOUSLY GOOD this was. I'm serious. I've made some things that are okay in the crock-pot, and some things that were pretty good in the crock-pot (like, my Shiner Cheer Stew). But this? Oh, man. This was just. that. good. Run to the store for the ingredients.

Ingredients for slow cooker chicken and eggplant parmigiana:
3 chicken breasts
1 small-to-medium eggplant
Approx. 2.5 cups of some sort of marinara sauce (I recommend a tomato-basil, or a mushroom marinara)
Italian breadcrumbs (I used regular mixed with Italian seasoning)
1/4 cup parmesan cheese (the original recipe calls for more, but this is expensive cheese)
About 4oz shredded mozzarella cheese
2 eggs
salt and pepper
canola oil

Directions:
Mix eggs, salt and pepper in a shallow dish (like a Pyrex).
Whip together.
Mix breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese in another shallow dish.
Preheat frying pan with some canola/vegetable oil.
While pan is heating with oil, coat chicken with egg, then dredge in breadcrumbs, making sure to coat entire breast.
Place chicken into hot oil and brown both sides (if you put the chicken into the pan and it doesn't sizzle, take it out. If the pan isn't hot enough, the bread crumbs will soak up all the oil without cooking...yuck).
While chicken is browning, slice eggplant (about 1/2 in.) and place in bottom of slow cooker.
Top with about half the sauce.
Place chicken in slow cooker, and top with remaining sauce.
Top with shredded mozzarella cheese.
Cook low for 4-6 hours.

Ingredients for spaghetti squash noodles:
Spaghetti squash, sliced in half length-wise
salt (I used garlic salt) and pepper.

Directions:
Slice spaghetti squash length-wise. It will look like this:

Scoop out the seeds (just like a pumpkin) with a spoon. Now it looks like this:

Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Bake at 425 for about an hour.
Use a fork to make "noodles" that look like this:

Now, put noodles on a plate and top with chicken and eggplant parmigiana.  Try not to overeat.  Yum!