therecipecritic
Pesto Chicken
Pesto Chicken made with fresh basil, spinach, garlic, walnuts and Parmesan cheese to make each bite irresistible!
👥 6 Servings⏱️ Prep & Cook: 20 min⏳ Prep: 10 min🔥 Cook: 10 min👤 The Recipe Critic📖 therecipecritic
🥘 Ingredients
Check off ingredients as you prepare them:
🍳 Cookware
- ●baking dish
- ●oven
- ●blender
- ●food processor
- ●pan
- ●skillet
- ●bowl
📝 Preparation Steps
1
Chicken
2
prepare
3
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil on both sides of 2 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breast. Season it with salt and pepper to taste then place the chicken in a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish.
olive oil1 tablespoon½ cup extra-virgin olive oilsalt and pepper to taste
4
bake
5
Bake the chicken until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, about 15 to ⏱️ 18 minutes.
6
Pesto
7
roll
8
Place 1 cup packed basil and 1 cup packed baby spinach in a resealable plastic bag. Use a rolling pin to lightly bruise the herbs and greens. Transfer to a food processor or blender.
packed basil1 cuppacked baby spinach1 cup
9
toast
10
Heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Toast 3 cloves unpeeled garlic until the outsides are lightly browned, shaking the pan occasionally, about ⏱️ 8 minutes. Remove the garlic skin and add it to a food processor.
unpeeled garlic3 cloves
11
toast
12
Place ¼ cup walnuts in the same pan and toast over medium heat, 3 to ⏱️ 4 minutes. Transfer to the food processor.
13
pulse
14
Add ½ teaspoon kosher salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper to the food processor. Process the pesto mixture by pulsing five times to help break down the greens.
15
blend
16
Turn the food processor on low speed, as it's running slowly drizzle in ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil until a smooth pesto with some smaller pieces is formed, about ⏱️ 10 seconds from start to finish.
olive oil1 tablespoon½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
17
season
18
Add ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese to the pesto and process on low speed for ⏱️ 5 seconds. Taste and season the sauce with salt and pepper as desired. Transfer pesto to a small bowl.
19
brush
20
Brush some pesto sauce on each cooked chicken breast. Transfer to a serving platter.
21
garnish
22
Top chicken with additional chopped walnuts and parmesan cheese, and 1 cup diced tomatoes. Serve extra pesto sauce on the side.
diced tomatoes1 cup
Nutrition Facts
calories
436 kcal
fat Content
27 g
serving Size
1 serving
fiber Content
1 g
sugar Content
1 g
sodium Content
486 mg
protein Content
43 g
cholesterol Content
125 mg
carbohydrate Content
3 g
saturated Fat Content
5 g
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