Basil Pesto Chicken

Let me start by saying that this isn’t turning into a cooking blog.  However, with the recent madness of recipe experimenting that is taking place in our home, I feel obligated to share when we stumble across one that is not only healthy but easy to make too.  This brings me to our newest dish that I made mention of last week on my blog post.  The  recipe below is derived from an original one listed on the South Beach Diet website.  And no, I am not participating in this diet.  During my search for recipes that exclude whey and dairy, high protein recipes are what you get.  Anyway, David gave this meal an A and I think the kids and I would have to agree.

 

Listed below are the ingredients you need:

4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast

Salt & Pepper to Taste

½ Cup Basil Pesto Sauce  

½ Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 375F.  Trim all visible fat from the chicken and cut each chicken breast lengthwise into 3 or 4 pieces.

 

Spray a 9" x 12" baking dish with non-stick spray and spread 1/4 cup basil pesto over the bottom of the dish.  (I used a 9" x 9" dish because I only made 3 chicken breasts).  

Lay chicken strip over the pesto and spread the remaining 1/4 cup of basil pesto over the chicken.  (I used Classico brand basil pesto sauce.  You could be adventurous and make your own with all the recipes out there but I wanted to save on time)

 Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil or use a baking dish with a tight-fitting lid.  Bake the chicken for 25-30 minutes until the chicken is nearly cooked through.

 

Remove the casserole dish from the oven, uncover, and sprinkle the chicken with 1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese.  Put the dish back into the oven without foil and cook until the cheese is melted, approximately 5 minutes more.  (I did not do this step.  Instead, I cooked the chicken entirely, served it, and we added cheese ourselves to make it "Brady-friendly."

 

Serve hot.  There will be some flavorful juice in the bottom of the dish when it is done.  I poured some of the sauce over the chicken once I dished it up.  It was also a great dipping sauce for the French bread I made as well.  Enjoy!

(I apologize for not snapping a photo of the final product.  I was hungry!)