Once in a while I just have to have a spicy fix! So of course - I headed Southwest to the land of hot chilies and warming spices. My Southwestern Chicken and Potato Casserole recipe is easy to make, is packed with flavor and topped off with cumin roasted potatoes and cheese.

Although I made the chicken from scratch here, you can substitute any leftover cooked chicken - deli rotisserie would give this casserole a great flavor too which will save you a step. As for the rest of the ingredients, you can adjust these to your liking.

I used the hot diced jalepenos and a medium hot salsa that was flavored with peppers, onions and garlic. Having said that, the dish came out pretty spicy, so just go with what you can handle. Choose your favorite - but purchase the thicker kind of salsa and not the garden fresh type from the refrigerator. The shelf stable salsas create more of sauciness throughout the dish. This recipe filled a 12 x 8 x 3 inch casserole dish, which will feed 6 people very well. And, if you have any leftovers - they make a great taco.


Ingredients

Olive oil
2 lbs. chicken breasts
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
3 - 4 cups potatoes (skin on) diced
1 1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
1 large red bell pepper, quartered and sliced
1 medium yellow onion, halved and sliced
1 15 oz. can yellow corn, drained
1 4 oz. can hot or mild diced jalepenos
1 16 oz. jar Organic medium (or mild) salsa
Salt to taste
1 1/2 cups cheddar jack cheese, shredded

Method

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

1. Rub a little olive oil over the chicken and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until the chicken breasts are cooked through, approximately 30 minutes if they are not too thick.

2. In the meantime, drizzle some olive oil over the diced potatoes and rub in the cumin, paprika and 1 tsp. kosher salt coating the potatoes well. Remove the chicken from the oven when cooked through. Cool completely and either dice into bite sized cubes or thin strips. Next, place the potatoes on a shallow pan and roast until they gain some color and are tender when pierced with a fork.

3. While the potatoes cook, heat a little olive oil over a medium flame and cook the onion and bell pepper, stirring occasionally until the onions look opaque, approximately 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine the chicken, bell pepper, onion, corn, jalepenos and salsa. Mix thoroughly and place in a casserole dish large enough to hold the contents.

4. Layer the potatoes evenly over the top and sprinkle with the cheese. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Let it rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Have glasses of milk handy to put out the heat. Enjoy!