Tilapia with tomatoes, basil and garlic with Parsley and Parmesan Risotto

First of all, if you're on facebook (and really, who isn't these days?!) you can now join the "A Busy Mom's Crock Pot Cooking Adventures" Group!  All you have to do is search for it in the search box at the top of the page!  You can feel free to start discussions about the recipes you've tried there, as well as here!  I started the page yesterday (7-1-10) and already have 50 members!  That's 2 more followers than we have on here!  Facebook is pretty amazing!  FEAR NOT!  I am not going to stop blogging here, I'm just going to post my links from here onto that group page.  So, hurry up and join!!!  Spread the word!  Let's see if we can get to 100 by the end of next week!  How amazing would that be?!

Ok, now on to the good stuff.....and I do mean GOOOOOOOOOODDDD STUFFFFFF!!!  I was optimistic on how tonight's dual Slow Cooker dinner would turn out, but I was even more surprised that it was actually really amazingly good, not just good!  The tilapia was cooked perfectly, and although I'm sure the chef's on TV would pick apart my Risotto for being too sticky, it tasted SOOOO good!!!  Wow!

I'm going to get straight to the part you come here for!  Here are my recipes:

Tilapia with Tomatoes, Basil and Garlic

with Parsley and Parmesan Risotto

Tilapia Ingredients:

4 Tilapia Filets 9about 4 oz. each)

salt (to taste)

pepper (to taste)

garlic powder (to taste)

onion powder (to taste)

4 basil leaves, chopped

4 tsp. butter

1 cup white wine

1 large tomato, chopped

Tilapia Directions:

Lay out four decently sized pieces of foil (use you best judgment based on the size of your Tilapia filets).

Sprinkle each filet with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder.  

Divide each teaspoon of butter into 2 slices.  Lay 2 on each filet of Tilapia.

Divide you chopped tomatoes evenly over the top of the Tilapia.

Evenly sprinkle the chopped basil over each filet.

Pour about 1/4 cup white wine over each filet.  *DON'T FORGET TO CURL THE EDGES UP FIRST BEFORE YOU DO THIS OR YOU'LL END UP WITH WINE ALL OVER YOUR COUNTER!!!*

Next, close each foil packet like a little boat.  

Place each foil pack into the Slow Cooker like so............

Cook on LOW for 2-3 hours.  Your fish should flake easily with a fork.

Risotto Ingredients:

2 cups Arborio Rice

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 shallot, finely chopped

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

4 cups Chicken Broth

1 cup white wine

1/4 cup Olive Oil

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Risotto Directions:

In a skillet, heat olive oil.  Add the onions and shallots.  Cook until clear.  Pour all juices, onions and shallots into the Slow Cooker insert.

Add the arborio rice, parsley, chicken broth, white wine, salt and pepper and give it a good mix.

Cook on HIGH for 2 hours or less.  Right before serving, stir in the Parmesan Cheese.

TIPS:  I had a lot of fun making this today, but since the cook times are so short, this wouldn't work if you work full-time (like I do, 3/4 of the year!)  This might be something you make on the weekend when you're home, or a day you know you'll be home early.  I would have the foil packets ready to go and all the Risotto ingredients assembled in the Slow Cooker already if that's the case.  Make your life easier!  

If you wanted to omit the parsley from the Risotto, or don't care for shallots, adapt it however you would like.  I was really excited to use parsley from my garden!  I love shallots, so I bought the biggest one I could find.  They are usually pretty small, so you might just go with a smaller one if you wanted.

ENJOY!!!!