Chicken with Jalapeno Popper Sauce

Adapted: Food.com

My new love is HOMEMADE jalapeno poppers. God, I love those bad boys. When I stumbled upon this recipe on Food.com, I knew I had to make it. I did make a couple of changes like I always do, but this recipe was just downright yummers. I do feel it has much more of a Mexican dish flare to it than a jalapeno popper, but I would take it any way it was called.

I served it along with the Mexican rice side dish which is on the Pub and Grub, as well as Fiesta Corn and simple blue margaritas. The meal came together perfectly. This is also a dish I would serve as a "light" entertainment with friends.

So, here we go!:

Ingredients:

8 slices bacon
3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts halved lengthwise or 6 small chicken breasts
3 large jalapenos, seeded and chopped (make sure they are larger peppers)
1.5 teaspoons jarred garlic
2.5 cups chicken broth
8 oz cream cheese, cubed
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
4 tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped

Optional:
Tortilla chips (which work wonderfully to scoop up the sauce, rice and chicken)
Avocado or guacamole

Directions:

1) In a very large skillet, cook bacon until crisp. Watch very carefully..bacon goes from beautiful to disaster very quickly. Set aside to drain, but reserve bacon grease in pan. Crumble bacon when drained.
2) Between 2 sheets of saran wrap, pound chicken to even thickness. Salt and pepper them on both sides
3) Cook chicken in bacon grease 5 minutes each side. Remove to platter and keep warm in a 170 degree oven
5) Add jalapenos to grease and cook for 1 minute, then add chopped garlic and cook another minute
6) Add chicken broth, deglazing pan while doing so.
7) Add cream cheese stiring until melted and then the cheddar cheese doing the same.
8) Return crumbled bacon and cilantro to pan.
9) Serve chicken with sauce spooned over it.