Tender chicken breast is smothered in a queso like sauce full of fire roasted hatch chiles, sprinkled with bacon and then covered in more cheese. Want some?!? 15 minutes to get it in the oven and 20 minutes to cook makes it an easy weeknight dinner. Keto, low carb friendly and gluten free.
1/2cupfire roasted hatch chiliseeded and chopped (see note)
8ozcream cheesesoftened
½teaspoongarlic powder
¼teaspoonsalt
½teaspooncoarsely ground black pepper
1 1/2cupsMonterey jack cheeseshredded
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375 F.
Dice the bacon and crisp it up in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Drain the pieces on a paper towel and set aside.
Slice the chicken in half. Use the flat of your hand to hold the breast steady on the cutting board and start at the thick end. Slice horizontally to create two slices that are about even thickness. Lay the four pieces of chicken in single layer in a 9”x12” casserole dish.
Remove the stems from the chilis and slit them up one side so each pepper lays flat. Use a knife to scrape out the seeds and membranes and discard them. Dice enough peppers to make ½ cup.
Thoroughly mix the cream cheese, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Stir in the chopped chilies. Spread the mixture evenly over the chicken. Scatter the bacon on top. Scatter the Monterey jack cheese on top of that.
Bake at 375 F until the chicken has reached 160F internally, and the cheese is browning on top. 20-25 minutes.
Serve hot over rice with refried beans and fresh tomato slices.
Notes
Mild, Medium or Hot?: How spicy are hatch chilies? The mild ones are usually suitable for children. The medium is on the spicy side for people who really don’t eat anything hotter than mild sauce at Taco Bell. The hot are HOT. You can make this recipe with any of the three varieties.When hatch chilies are not in season you can buy them canned. Drain the chopped chilies and use ½ cup as per recipe directions.