Slow Cooker Chicken Bacon Ranch Sandwiches with Ranch Slaw

It happens every year around this time, when the weather starts gradually changing from fall to winter: I get really, really lazy when it comes to cooking. It gets dark earlier, my kids are more likely to be under my feet while I'm preparing dinner since they can't play outside, and basically I just want to curl up on the couch in my pajamas with a good book. Alas, my family needs to eat, so I still have to make something. 

So around this time of year, dinners start getting much simpler in our house. I start making more skillet dinners, more slow-cooker dinners, and other dishes that require very little hands-on work. 

These sandwiches are a perfect example of my late-fall-and-winter cooking philosophy. They require basically no hands-on work, and the results are absolutely delicious. You guys know what a sucker I am for the chicken-bacon-ranch combo, and when you cook them together and top them with a creamy slaw, you have one delicious dinner on your hands. And yet another thing to love about these sandwiches is that the leftovers can be turned into a completely different and delicious dinner the next night...which I'll share with you on Wednesday. 
 
(P.S. If you guys are getting sick of this whole make-it-once-use-it-multiple-times style of cooking I've adopted lately, I should warn you that it won't be stopping anytime soon. I just love the convenience and cost-effectiveness of it!)

Slow Cooker Chicken Bacon Ranch Sandwiches with Ranch Slaw
adapted from Eat at Home

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 package ranch dressing mix
1 3-ounce package real bacon bits
1 bag cole slaw mix
Ranch dressing
Sliced cheddar cheese
Sandwich buns for serving

1. Add the chicken to the slow cooker. In a small bowl, whisk together the chicken stock and ranch dressing mix. Pour over the chicken. Top with bacon bits. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 4 to 5 hours. Shred the chicken.

2. Before serving, toss the cole slaw mix with ranch dressing to taste in a large bowl. 

3. Serve the shredded chicken on sandwich buns, topped with a slice of cheddar cheese and a pile of the ranch slaw.