Citrus Chili Chicken Fajitas Topped With A Roasted Lentil, Corn, & Peach Salsa

In many cases you start with an amazing meal and want to compliment it with an equally dazzling glass of wine. But these zesty, juicy southwestern chicken fajitas were inspired by a spicy Spanish red wine, called Ergo Tempranillo from the Rioja region of Spain. I discovered it at a wine tasting that I was pouring for.

With its ruby hue, aromas and flavors of dark cherry, plum, tobacco, vanilla, and herb, followed by a lingering spicy finish it is a perfect pairing for Mexican food.

I started with marinating a chicken breast in my Citrus Macadamia Coconut pesto. This adds a supremely scrumptious flavor but if you don't have what you need to make this or want to skip this step just marinate the chicken in:

the juice and zest from 1/2 a lime, lemon, and orange, 1 tablespoon of honey, 1/4 cup of coconut milk, 1 ounce of sweet white wine (see below list of chicken ingredients for details on the wine), 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1 tablespoon grape seed or olive oil.

I wanted to move away from the traditional tomato salsa and towards an unexpected taste alternative using seasonal peaches and corn.

This is a multi-layered meal and your palate deserves a liquid partner that can carry it's own weight. Tempranillo really came through!

The chilled salsa cools the heat from the chilis and offers great texture with the dense chick peas and crunchy corn.

Roasting the vegetables enhances their sweet taste and is deliciously offset by the southwestern spices.

Citrus Chili Chicken Fajitas With Roasted Lentil, Corn, And Peach Salsa

Ingredients For Chicken

2 boneless chicken breasts

1/2 cup citrus macadamia coconut pesto

1 ounce sweet white wine (I used Star Tree 2010 Nouveau Blanc from South Africa, but you can use any sweet white wine like Moscato or Riesling)

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons Grape Seed oil (1 for marinade, 2 for cooking chicken)

Ingredients For Roasted Lentil, Corn, And Peach Salsa

2 ears of white sweet corn (you can use yellow or frozen, but drain well)

1 can chick peas, drained

1 medium onion, coarsely chopped

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

2 tablespoon olive oil

2 medium peaches, cut into pieces about the same size as the chick peas

1/2 teaspoon butter

1/2 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon peach vodka

juice from 1/2 lime

1/2 of Anaheim chili pepper, seeds removed and chopped fine (you can use serrano or jalapeno)

1 tablespoon fresh parsley

Ingredients For Fajitas

1 tablespoon of olive or grape seed oil

1 medium onion, coarsely chopped

1 bell pepper (red, yellow, or orange)

other 1/2 of Anaheim chili pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

juice from 1/2 lime

1 ounce Tempranillo wine, or other spicy red Spanish wine

cooked chicken, sliced into strips

4 - 8 inch tortillas

1 cup sour cream

Directions For Chicken

Add all ingredients into a Ziploc bag, massage, and marinate for 3 to 4 hours. Heat a skillet on medium. Add oil. Cook chicken until browned on each side, approximately 10 to 15 minutes.

Directions For Roasted Lentil, Corn, And Peach Salsa

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine first 9 ingredients in a bowl and stir to coat. Layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until peas are slightly crisp.

While all of that is cooking melt butter in another skillet. Add honey, stir. Gently toss in peaches. Heat for about 4 or 5 minutes, stirring to mix. Pour in vodka and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes to let alcohol evaporate. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

Combine roasted veggies, peaches, and remaining salsa ingredients. Toss and set aside.

Directions For Chicken Fajitas

Remove chicken from pan and slice into strips. Wipe out pan.

Add oil and heat on medium. Then toss in vegetables, salt, and lime juice. Saute for about 10 minutes until veggies are crisp, tender. Pour in wine and cook down for another 3 or 4 minutes. Add chicken and heat through.

Heat tortillas in microwave for 12 seconds. Layer each with chicken mixture and top with salsa and sour cream.