I was hungry for chicken mole this past weekend but too lazy to spend half a day making the mole.

This morning I tossed together my version of a cheater chicken mole. I think it turned out great so I'm passing it along.

CHEATER CHICKEN MOLE

1/4 Cup Cocoa (I used the Dutch process from KA)

1 Heaping Tablespoon Ground Chipolte

1 Heaping Tablespoon Ground Ancho

1 Tablespoon Ground Cumin

1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder

2 Teaspoon Ground Oregano

1/2 Teaspoon Ground Allspice

1 Heaping Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon

2 Heaping Teaspoons Sea Salt

2 Heaping Teaspoons Coarse-Grind Black Pepper

Mix everything together & store either in a plastic storage carton or even a Zip-lock.

I used bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts.

Rub a bit of olive oil over the skin. Sprinkle a heaping teaspoon of rub over the chicken & rub into the skin with your fingers. Cover with plastic wrap & refrigerate for several hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Stovetop, preheat cast iron skillet on high to almost smoking. Place chicken, skin side down, in skillet. Without moving the chicken, cook for 3-4 minutes. Turn the chicken & place in the hot oven for 15-25 minutes depending on size of chicken breasts. Mine were large (Perdue chicken) & took about 25 minutes. They were cooked perfect.

The stovetop sear crusts up the skin with the mole rub nicely. The smell as they were in the oven was fantastic! They were spicy hot but not over the top. What a quick easy way to get my mole fix...

/tricia