Grilled Chicken with Cherry-Chipotle Barbecue Sauce
From EatingWell Magazine June/July 2006

Grilled Chicken with Cherry-Chipotle Barbecue Sauce

Chopped cherries combine with cherry preserves and smoky, hot chipotle peppers for an unusual marinade and sauce for grilled chicken. One reviewer posted, "The flavor is sweet, smoky and a little spicy. It's the perfect sauce to add a little "zing" to grilled chicken." Another said this is also good on pork.

1 cup fresh or frozen (thawed) dark sweet cherries, pitted and chopped
1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/3 cup cherry preserves
1/3 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (see Note), or more to taste
1 1/4 teaspoons dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed

1. Stir cherries, broth, preserves, ketchup, vinegar, chipotle peppers, thyme and allspice in a small deep bowl. Transfer to a shallow nonreactive dish large enough to hold chicken. Add chicken and turn to coat well. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or up to 1 day.

2. Preheat grill to high. Oil the grill rack. Remove the chicken from the marinade. Transfer the marinade to a medium skillet. [From the picture, it looks like they leave the chopped cherries in the marinade and not clinging to the chicken.]

3. Bring the marinade to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the sauce is reduced by about half, 12 to 15 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, reduce the grill heat to medium and grill the chicken until cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 7 to 9 minutes per side. Let the chicken cool slightly; serve with the sauce.

Makes 8 servings

Note: Chipotle chiles in adobo sauce are smoked jalapeños packed in a flavorful sauce. Look for the small cans with the Mexican foods in large supermarkets. Once opened, they’ll keep up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator or 6 months in the freezer.

NUTRITION INFORMATION:
Per serving: 180 calories; 3 g fat (1 g sat, 1 g mono); 63 mg cholesterol; 15 g carbohydrate; 24 g protein; 1 g fiber; 179 mg sodium; 272 mg potassium.
Nutrition bonus: Selenium (29% daily value).