Apricot Almond Chicken

Trying out a new recipe from a slow cooker cookbook . I liked the look of this recipe because it was already pretty clean and healthy as long as I used natural apricot preserves. I had a bit of a sweet craving today so thought this would satisfy it.

Apricot Almond Chicken

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups chicken broth (I used homemade I had)
1 cup uncooked brown rice
1 small onion
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
1/4 cup chopped sweet red pepper
1 tsp salt, optional
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp dried marjoram
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (1 lb)
4 tbsp apricot preserves
1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Directions:
In a greased casserole dish (13"x 9"), combine broth, rice, onion, peppers, salt if desired, thyme and marjoram. Top with chicken.

Cover and bake at 350 for 55-60 minutes or until rice is tender. Uncover and stir rice. Place 1 tbsp of preserves on each chicken breast. Bake for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with almonds. Bake for 5 minutes longer or until meat juices run clear. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

I used only red peppers, because that's what I had (Kevin doesn't care for the green ones so I don't buy them). I chose to omit the salt because I find that thyme usually adds a salty enough taste for me. I used simply fruit apricot preserves which I always have as its a personal favorite, one of the few really sweet things that I like. I also didn't toast my almonds before hand. Just tossed slivered almonds on top and put it back in the oven.
I found that 350 in my oven wasn't hot enough to cook the rice. I increased the heat to 400 and everything was ready in 20 minutes. Also, the preserves slid off in large part. For next time, I would combine the preserves and almonds and see if that creates more of a crust.
Taste was great, it was filling and Kevin liked it. I served the chicken and rice with a large green salad. My serving was approx 6 ozs of chicken, 1/2 c of rice, and 1 1/2 c of salad with 1 tbsp of Ceasar dressing.