In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, we are going to go green! so i made Chicken Pesto Pasta. Pesto is an Italian sauce mainly made out of Basil, Pine Nut, Olive Oil and Parmesan Cheese. I find Pesto to be a pretty flexible sauce that can be combined into many different types of dishes so feel free to experiment. You can find them pre-made in the stores however today we will make it fresh from scratch. It’s a very simple and quick dish that can be accomplished by any skill level and i definitely recommend everyone to try making it at home.
Ingredients
- 1-2 Chicken Breast halved, cubed
- 3/4 cups Fresh Basil Leaves
- 1/2 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
- 3 Tablespoons Pine Nuts
- 2 cloves Garlic, Peeled
- Salt And Pepper, to taste
- 1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/2 cup Heavy Cream
- 2 Tablespoons Butter
- 1/4 cup Grated Parmesan (additional)
- 12 ounces, weight Spinach Pasta
- 2 whole Tomatoes, Diced
Directions
- Cut and dice your chicken breast into cubes and lightly season with salt and pepper. In a pan, cook the chicken thoroughly but be careful to not over cook them. Set aside.
- Fill a pot with water and add 1 tbps oil and a tsp of salt. Bring the water to boil and put in your pasta.
- Be sure to read the instructions in the back for how long to cook them which usually range from 5-12 minutes. Drain and set aside if it finishes cooking before everything else.
- Add basil leaves, Parmesan, pine nuts, garlic and salt and pepper to a food processor. Turn machine on, then drizzle in olive oil while it mixes. Continue blending until combined, adding additional olive oil if needed. Set aside.
- Heat cream and butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add pesto and stir.
- Combine in the Pasta and Chicken and mix well.
- Lastly quickly mix in the tomato and serve immediately.
