Chicken and Pineapple Quesadillas

The other day, I had some bananas that were past their prime and was going to make smoothies for LBA and SoBA.  I didn't really have any other good smoothie fruit in the house, other than a can of pineapple.  Presto, pineapple and banana smoothies.  But neither of them could guess the pineapple was in there with the banana.

Then I found this recipe from The Pioneer Woman and I am again reminded how much I love good pineapple and need to find more ways to get it into the things we eat more regularly.  Granted, this recipe is WAY more involved than Mrs. BA or I tend to get when making quesadillas for the boys, but one could probably substitute canned pineapple (Pioneer Woman uses fresh here) and rotisserie chicken (she cooks boneless breasts for these).  We also tend to tone down the heat at the launchpad and would probably hold off on the jalapeno.

Grilled Chicken & Pineapple Quesadillas
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 25 Minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 8 whole Flour Tortillas
• Butter or Margarine
• 2 cups Grilled Pineapple, Sliced 
• 3 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts 
• Salt and Pepper, to taste 
• 3 cups Monterey Jack Cheese, Grated 
• 1 whole Jalapeno, Sliced Cilantro 
• 3 Tablespoons Barbecue Sauce 

Instructions
(To grill pineapple: cut wedges, stick on skewers, and grill over low heat. Cut into slices.)

(To pound chicken, place inside a Ziploc bag and pound with a mallet or large can to flatten to uniform thickness.)

Sprinkle with salt and pepper and Cajun spice (or cumin/cayenne, etc.) Drizzle olive oil on a grill pan and grill on both sides until done, brushing with barbecue sauce. Set aside and slice into very thin slices.

Warm griddle over medium heat and put sizzling butter or margarine in the pan. Slightly warm and toast tortillas on both sides, then remove from griddle and set aside.

To assemble, sprinkle four browned tortillas with grated Monterey Jack. Arrange chicken slices evenly over the surface. Add pineapple slices and jalapeno slices. Sprinkle on cilantro. If desired, drizzle extra barbecue sauce over the top. Add second browned tortilla on top of each one. (You'll have four complete quesadillas at this point.)

Add to oven to warm, or back to skillet to warm, until cheese is melted. Cut each quesadilla into six wedges. Serve with sour cream, pico de gallo, and lime wedges.