Creamy Southwest Chicken

I am suspicious of simple recipes. For some reason, I tend to think that the extra time, attention, and ingredients that go into complex recipes make for more nuanced results. But I am also conversely attracted to simple recipes. I have a busy life, yet want to cook homemade meals for my family. A simple recipe seems like the perfect solution.

What do I mean by simple? A recipe that contains less than a half-dozen ingredients, and whose list of steps is usually three or less. A one-pot meal, something that doesn't require my constant hovering attention.

I came across a version of this recipe a while back and thought "That's it? There's no way that can be good." But this weekend when I was meal-planning for the upcoming week, I thought of this recipe and spontaneously bought the ingredients. If it wasn't great, it would at least be decent, I thought.

Well, it was better than decent. And it also passed another recipe test: make enough for leftovers, or even for a second meal. I served this with brown rice, and the leftover sauce and rice is currently stuffed into bell peppers and baking in the oven. I think this one gets the simple recipe gold medal for meeting and exceeding all requirements.

Creamy Southwest Chicken
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
8 oz block cream cheese (reduced fat is okay, fat free is definitely not, eww.)
1 jar salsa (um, the regular sized jar...don't know the measurements on this. Pick a variety you like...anything goes).
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 bag frozen corn (again, the normal sized bag), defrosted

Place chicken breasts in the bottom of the slow cooker stoneware. Cut cream cheese into six pieces and place on top of chicken. Dump salsa overtop everything, then dump on the black beans and then the corn. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours, low for 5-7 hours. Before serving, stir the sauce together to blend the cream cheese in.

I served this over rice, with a sprinkling of shredded monterey jack cheese. Cilantro would also be a nice addition.