One of Ben’s and my favorite restaurants in town is Granite City Brewery. From cinnamon rolls as big as our heads, to ultra-refreshing seasonal blueberry brew, we always know we’ll have a great meal and drink whenever we stop by.
One of the items we’ve grown particularly attached to is their Chicken Caesar Chalupa appetizer.
Baked flour tortillas are brushed with Caesar dressing, topped with shredded chicken and mozzarella cheese, then baked. They’re served with an ice-cold Caesar salad and chopped tomatoes for scooping, and are the epitome of refreshing and satisfying. Imagine our horror when we stopped in a few months ago and found out the Chicken Caesar Chalupas had been taken off the menu!? Noooo!
Right then and there Ben and I vowed to recreate the crispy app at home. 3+ months later (…) we finally got around to it, Baked Chicken Caesar Chalupa Nachos, people. These. babies. ROCK! One of our favorite restaurant recreations ever!
Start by sauteing a couple chicken breasts seasoned with lemon pepper in non-stick spray until cooked all the way through.
Once they’re cool enough to handle, shred the chicken with your fingers or a fork, and set aside.
Next, take a few burrito-sized flour tortillas and cut each one into 8 wedges.
These are extra-large, because that’s how Ben likes his breakfast burritos, but the normal sized ones will totally do.
Tip: Look for tortillas that are slightly “fluffy” looking, as opposed to the ones that are very flat. The layers in the fluffy tortillas mean they’re sturdier and will hold up better to being baked with yummy toppings.
Once all the tortillas have been cut into wedges, lay them on foil-lined and non-stick sprayed baking sheets.
Spray the tops with more non-stick spray, then bake at 400 degrees until they’re lightly toasted and just starting to turn golden brown. Tip: You can do this ahead of time! Just let the wedges cool completely before putting them in an air-tight container for a couple days.
Alright, here comes the fun part – piling on the toppings!
First top each wedge with about 1 teaspoon Caesar dressing.
I heart Brianna’s Asiago Caesar, but feel free to use whatever’s your fave.
Next add on a little bit of the cooked & shredded lemon pepper chicken.
Finish with shredded mozzarella cheese.
Put the wedges back into the 400 degree oven for 4-5 minutes, or until the tortillas are golden brown, and the cheese is melted. YUM!!!!
Lay the wedges around crunchy romaine lettuce that’s been cut into bite-sized pieces and tossed with a little more Casesar dressing, then sprinkle chopped, fresh tomatoes around the outside!
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Baked Chicken Caesar Chalupa Nachos
Description
Baked Chicken Caesar Chalupa Nachos are irresistible and perfect for scooping up an ice-cold Caesar Salad!
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts
- non-stick spray
- Lemon pepper seasoning
- 3-4 burrito-sized flour tortillas
- Caesar dressing
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 2 tomatoes, chopped
- 4 cups romaine lettuce, chopped into bite-sized pieces
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray both sides of the chicken breasts with non-stick spray, season with lemon pepper, and saute in a skillet until no longer pink in the middle, about 4-5 minutes a side. Let cool slightly, then shred with a fork or your fingers. Set aside.
- Cut flour tortillas into 8 wedges each. Line baking sheets with foil, then spray with non-stick spray. Lay down tortillas and spray tops with non-stick spray. Bake for 3-4 minutes, or until wedges are slightly toasted and just starting to turn golden brown.
- Spread about 1 teaspoon of Caesar dressing on each of the toasted tortilla wedges. Top with shredded chicken and mozzarella cheese. Bake for 4-5 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
- Toss romaine lettuce with enough Caesar dressing to coat. Place in the middle of a plate, and surround with baked Caesar chicken wedges. Sprinkle with chopped tomato and serve.
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
Chicken Caesar Chalupas would be awesome as a starter for a dinner party, or a fun entree for 2 or 3. I hope you’ll give them a try!
Delicious!! Thank you so much for sharing.
Hey there! I used to work at GC. small tip: leave the tortilla whole and do everything above. Then you can cut it up with a pizza cutter and then put it around the salad. Less hand work.
To all the fanatics of Granite City, I am pleased to tell you that the Chicken Caesar Chalupa’s are back! I just had them on Monday!
THANK YOU!!! GC’s Chicken Caesar Chalupa was my FAVORITE and I also listened in HORROR the last time we visited and they told me it was no longer on the menu. Can’t wait to try this!
Thank you for another great recipe! We tried this one for the first time tonight and my husband & I both loved it! Happy New Year, we look forward to trying all the new recipes you post this year since we usually love pretty much everything you post:) We’re both originally from Iowa by the way and I love telling people about your blog, you’re definitely my fav food blogger!
So Thank You for this recipe. My husband and I love going to Granite City for the buffalo chicken chalupa and they decided to take it off the menu. We were very upset about it until now with this recipe. We’re trying it tonight!!
[…] line up fresh toppings nacho bar style, fill our chips to the brim with wacky ingredients, or even bake our own tortilla chips for an ultra-flavorful crunch, making our own nacho platter is little more budget and waistline […]
Delicious!! Thank you so much for sharing. This flavor was a hit, but I am also brainstorming other flavor varieties with the same concept.