I’m a carnivore. It wasn’t until I was 20 that I started to eat salad, and 22 that I started eating sautéed vegetables. I know, I’m terrible. Pesto was out of the question until I tried this recipe. It’s not like eating a bale of hay, and I love it! I use it in pasta, stuff it in chicken breasts (recipe below), and serve it with crackers.
Start with your food processor (or a blender could work with some patience). Pulse the following ingredients until the basil is finely chopped.
| 1/2 teaspoon | salt |
| 2 cups | basil leafs |
| 6 cloves | garlic |
It will look like this, and the aroma of basil will be everywhere. There’s no hiding what’s for dinner tonight!
Add the pine nuts, and continue to pulse until they completely cream into the basil/garlic mixture.
| 1/4 cup | pine nuts |
The mixture will now look like this with the pine nuts incorporated…
Add a steady stream of olive oil and the pesto emulsifies beautifully.
| 1/2 cup | olive oil |
You could leave this part out to spare a couple calories, but it makes it SO GOOD, oh so just leave it it. Fold in a dab of butter and cream.
| 3 tablespoons | butter |
| to taste | cream |
Mix in parmesan cheese to your liking. Now your pesto is ready to serve. If you’re up for pesto stuffed chicken, here are the steps:
Pesto Stuffed Chicken
1. Pound out 4 – 8 chicken breasts (skin side down on the cutting board). Add a layer of pesto and parmesan.
2. Roll each chicken breast tightly using plastic wrap, tucking in the sides (jelly roll style). Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven and the pan to 375, and once heat add the chicken breasts.
4. After about 25 minutes (or 165 internal temperature), pull them out and enjoy!
