Grilled Chicken Chile Avocado Melt

This recipe will take a little bit of time from start to finish, but the flavor of fresh-roasted mild chiles, fajita-style seasoning, fresh avocado, and a touch of melted sharp cheddar cheese is definitely worth it.  And though it will take a little time to get ready, it’s not difficult.  So roll up your sleeves and give this one a shot when you’re looking for something new to do with grilled chicken.
Gather Up:

• 4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
• 2 anaheim chiles
• 2 poblano chiles
• 1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and cut into 12 slices
• 1 lime, cut into wedges
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Combine the chili powder, cumin, and sea salt in a small bowl.  Shake evenly over both sides of the chicken breasts, then set aside in the fridge for about 20 minutes.

Place the chiles on a stoneware pan under the broiler (about 2″ from the elements) on HIGH to roast and blacken the skins.  Continue roasting and turning until the skins are black and blistered all around.  You may find the poblanos will finish sooner (as they are bigger and thus closer to the element).  As soon as each chile is fully blistered, transfer to a bowl covered with foil or plastic wrap to seal in the moisture, until all of the chiles are “sweating” together.  Turn the oven down to 350 degrees and re-set the rack to the middle.

Heat the grill to medium-high (about 400 degrees).  Cook the chicken breasts about 10 minutes, turning once, until they are just cooked through and the juices are clear.  While the breasts are cooking, you can shred the cheese, and cut up the avocado, lime, and cilantro.

Once the chiles have sweat for a little while and are cool enough to touch, remove the skins (they should almost fall off).  Split each chile in half, remove the seeds, and then cut in half again (so you end up with four pieces per chile).  With the poblanos, I make them into four lengthwise slices, while the anaheims I will cut in half lengthwise once and across once.

Arrange the chicken breasts (fresh off the grill) on the stoneware pan.  Squeeze fresh lime juice from a couple of the wedges over the breasts, then top each breast with three slices of avocado and two pieces of each type of chile.  Sprinkle the shredded cheese over top of everything.

Bake in the oven for about 5 minutes to warm everything evenly and melt the cheese.  Serve with another squeeze of lime over the top and garnished with the fresh cilantro.  If you’ve got some fresh pico de gallo add some on the side.  Enjoy!