Had some friends over for dinner the other night and had my first pork allergy guest as well as a request for no fish. So I decided to go with chicken but wanted to elevate the usually bland protein. Think it turned out really well ( and so did they!).Cocoa Chile grilled Chicken Breast w/ sweet onion jam and cilantro walnut pesto
Chicken
4 large Chicken breasts
Olive oil for sauté
Spice Rub
1/2 Tbspn Cocoa powder
1/2 Tbspn Paprika
1/4 Tbspn Chili Powder
1/8 Tbspn Garlic Powder
Salt and pepper
Season the chicken with the spice rub and sear in a pan once you get the desired color set aside and finish in oven at 350 degrees.
Pesto
1 bunch of fresh cilantro
1 cup walnuts
Parmesan cheese
4 cloves garlic
1/2 lemon (juice)
1/2 cup Olive oil
salt to taste
Combine all ingredients minus the oil and salt in a food processor, add oil slowly to emulsify. Add salt to taste.
Onion Jam
2 Texas Sweet onions (1 if it's a large one), halved and sliced
2 Tbspn Sherry Vinegar
2 Tbspn Butter
Melt the butter in a pan then add the onion slices. cook until translucent then add the sherry vinegar and allow the liquid to cook down with the onions.
I made a cheddar chipotle polenta as a starch.
