Nicole

My husband was horrified the first time I made him nachos early in our marriage. I'm not sure if it was because they were microwaved or it was the use of American cheese slices. Either way, he did a double take when I handed him a plate of what we had always called nachos in my house growing up. (I love how being married to someone for even a short time can show you so many reasons that the family you grew up with was not as normal as you thought.) My husband took over nacho making after that incident.





Thinking back, I should have done something similar with our dinners.









With my previous track record, you can see why my husband was skeptical when I told him I was making these nachos, especially when I told him there wouldn't be any tortilla chips involved. Skepticism turned to praise when he ate the first one, though. These nachos are delicious. Completely delicious. The chicken/salsa topping alone is tasty, and throw it on top of some mini peppers that are cooked just long enough to get slight sweet, add in some melted cheese and favorite nacho toppings and this is a new family favorite. The missing tortilla chips were not even missed at all. The mini peppers stay just crispy enough to spoon up the topping easily, and their flavor goes so well with the rest of the nachos. It's a great way to eat more veggies and a healthier alternative to regular nachos. I might even say tastier alternative.









By HeatOvenTo350 Published 03/04/2013



Ingredients 1 teaspoon vegetable oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

6 green onions, sliced, white parts and green parts separated

1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 cup salsa

salt and pepper to taste

1 pound mini bell peppers (these are usually sold by the bag in the produce section near the full-sized bell peppers)

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar/Monterey jack cheese blend (can be low-fat)

1/4 cup sliced black olives

1/2 large tomato, diced

1/4 cup cilantro Instructions Heat oven to 350 degrees. Heat the oil in a 12 inch non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and the white parts of the green onions and cook and stir 1 minute. Mix in shredded chicken and chili powder. Toss until all ingredients are well coated with chili powder and chicken is warm, about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in salsa. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (I make the chicken mixture slightly salty because the mini peppers are unsalted.) Slice the ends off each mini bell pepper and slice in half lengthwise. Remove seeds and ribs and press each half open so the peppers are as flat as possible. Arrange close together in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Spoon chicken mixture evenly over pepper halves. Top with black olives and cheese mixture. Bake nachos for 10 minutes, or until cheese has melted. Remove from oven, top with tomatoes, cilantro, and remaining green onions. Serve. Yield: 4 side dish servings

Prep Time: 10 min

Cook time: 10 min

Recipe Source: HeatOvenTo350