Freezer Friday: Monterrey Chicken

I am part of a Freezer Cooking Club, and this is one of our favorite meals! It is so much a favorite that more often than not, it never makes it to the freezer. We all decide we will just take it home, put it in the fridge, and cook it tomorrow. 

There is so, so much to love! Boneless skinless chicken breasts, baked in barbecue sauce. Then, smother that chicken with tons more barbecue sauce, cheese, bacon, diced tomatoes, and green onions. Broil that sticky, savory mess until the cheese melts and you have some very good eating. 

How is this a freezer meal? There are usually 4-6 of us at Freezer Club. We will bake all the chicken with barbecue sauce until it is just about cooked through and the juices run clear. Then we transfer the baked chicken to our individual 9x13 pans and douse them with goodness. We seal the pans up with foil and freeze them. When it is time to eat Monterrey Chicken for dinner, I let the chicken thaw in the fridge overnight. Then I broil it until the chicken is warmed through and the cheese is melted. Really, really tasty! 

When I have leftovers, I dice up the chicken and scoop up all the extra toppings and place them on a bed of spinach, or whatever I have. A happy, little lunch date for myself.

I'm just giving rough estimates on the amounts of the toppings. Really, this is an eyeball recipe. You  just smother that chicken until it looks good to you!

Monterrey Chicken

Ingredients:

• 2-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, thawed
• 1 1/2 cups barbecue sauce, (we love Sweet Baby Ray's)
• 2 diced Roma tomatoes
• 3 diced green onions
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup cooked chopped bacon, or bacon bits

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place chicken on a cookie sheet and baste with 1/2 cup barbecue sauce. Bake until juices run clear, without overbaking, about 20-30 minutes, depending on how thick your chicken breasts are.
2. Remove from oven and smother chicken with remaining barbecue sauce, shredded cheese, tomatoes, green onions, and bacon. 
3. Broil until cheese is melted and toppings are slightly bubbly.  

Directions for freezing:

1. Bake oven as directed. Place chicken in a 9x13 freezer-safe pan. Once baked, smother chicken with more barbecue sauce, shredded cheese, tomatoes, green onions, and bacon. 
2. Cover pan in foil or seal tight. Freeze.
3. To bake, let thaw overnight in refrigerator. Once thawed, remove foil and broil, uncovered until toppings are nice and bubbly. 

Bake the bread. Share the slices.