Valentine's Day Chicken Mole

I've been looking for a reason to try these dried ancho chiles I bought from Penzeys, and stumbled on this recipe of Martha's.  A slow-cooker recipe was perfect for last night, so we'd have a nice dinner ready for us when we got home. 

Ancho chiles are on the mild side of spicy, but there's a chipotle in there, too, which is a little higher on the heat scale.  Make sure you buy nicely trimmed boneless, skinless chicken thighs, or you'll end up spending more time than you have in the morning preparing this delicious meal.  Good slow-cooker recipes are hard to find, in my opinion, so this one will definitely get repeated.

Slow-Cooker Chicken Mole
from Martha Stewart,  Everyday Food, December 2011

4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 12)

Coarse salt

1 can (28 ounces) whole tomatoes

1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
2 dried ancho chiles, stemmed

1 large chipotle chile in adobo sauce

1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

1/4 cup raisins

3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (1/2 cup)

3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Fresh cilantro leaves, for serving

Season chicken thighs with salt and place in a 5-to-6-quart slow cooker.

In a blender (I used a food processor), puree tomatoes, onion, ancho and chipotle chiles, almonds, raisins, chocolate, garlic, oil, cumin, and cinnamon until smooth.

Add tomato mixture to slow cooker, cover, and cook on high until chicken is tender, 4 hours (or 8 hours on low). Serve chicken and sauce topped with cilantro.  (Serves 6.)   We had rice pilaf and an arugula salad on the side.

I hope you all had a nice Valentine's Day!