Chicken and Veggie Chilaquiles with Poblano Avocado Cream

I love to make chilaquiles because it's a delicious use of leftover meat and vegetables. This 'Mexican lasagna' is a multi-layer flavor extravaganza. I made this tonight with what I had in the fridge and included this new addition of the avocado and poblano cream is based on one of my favorite restaurant meals ever - Besito's Budin de Mariscos with crab and shrimp. On that note, you can pretty much substitute any ingredient in this dish - seafood, veggies, even use corn tortillas instead of flour.

Chilaquiles
1 chicken breast, shredded
1 cup of your favorite salsa (just please friends, no Tostitos)
1/2 package of shredded Mexican blend cheese
1 zucchini, grated and squeezed dry through a paper towel (just make sure its of decent quality)
1 cup of kale, finely chopped
1/2 small onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
5 mushrooms, finely chopped
salt and pepper

Poblano Avocado Cream
2 poblano peppers
1 jalapeno, de-seeded, de-veined
1/3 cup sour cream
2 avocados
2-3 tbsp olive oil
Juice of 1 lime
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425.

2. Roast the poblanos for about 20 minutes (turn once half way through) or until they start to blister and get soft. Once they cool, remove the stem and all seeds. Turn oven down to 375.

3. Saute the onion and garlic on medium with a bit of olive oil until onions soften. Add the kale and stir frequently until the kale softens. Season with salt and pepper. Pour into a bowl and set aside.

4. In the same pan, saute the mushrooms and set aside. Add the chicken and 3/4 of the salsa. Let it simmer to evaporate some of the juices. Turn off the heat.

5. Spray a deep dish (one you would use for lasagna) with baking spray. Spoon a bit of salsa on the bottom of the dish just to cover. Put down a layer of tortillas. Add some of the chicken mixture to form a layer. Add the mushrooms and then sprinkle some cheese over. Lay more tortillas on top, then more chicken, then the zucchini, and more cheese. Lay more tortillas, more chicken if you have it, then the kale mixture and a little cheese. Lay a final layer of tortillas and spoon the rest of the salsa on top (this will prevent the top layer from getting hard). Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top (and a little extra if you want!). Cover with foil and bake for 30 mins.

6. Meanwhile, in a food processor, add all of the cream ingredients with a good bit of salt and pepper.

7. Spoon about 1/4 cup of the avocado cream on the plate and swirl it with a spoon to spread it out in an even layer/circle on the plate. Serve the chilaquiles on top.