PESTO CHICKEN SALAD

Today I bought a giant zucchini from the farmer’s market and fresh herbs to plant. I’m pretty excited to get a heap of zoodles from that one zucchini. I swear it’s 10 times the size of a normal  one.

At the farmers market there were also some sweet potatoes the size of a watermelon. Okay, maybe a little smaller than that but they were close. Could you imagine trying to bake one whole? I wonder how many hours that would take. A sweet potato that big would make a good amount of sweet potato fries, that’s for sure. Shoot, maybe I should have bought the sweet potato too.

The herbs are a completely different story. I have no idea what to do with those. I bought 4 pots of herbs (thyme, mint, sage and rosemary) that I need to plant so that I can keep growing my own. I’m really hoping I don’t kill them all because I’ve never exactly grown anything before. At this point I don’t even have anything to put them in or a place to keep them that will get good sunlight. Things aren’t looking so optimistic. Anyone have any tips?

I have been cooking and baking like crazy this week! It’s been all I’ve wanted to do everyday, to create new recipes. This could be partially because the weather has been stormy, which makes me want to stay inside. And when I’m inside all day, I want to cook. It’s a good cycle. What this means for you is lots of new recipes for the blog!

I have to say that out of all the things I’ve cooked this week, this pesto chicken salad is probably my favorite. I just love pesto. And pesto with chicken. Who doesn’t? This easy-to-make chicken salad is the perfect, healthy lunch.

Triple threat: Simple, healthy and delicious.

Serving this salad is as simple as mixing your precooked, shredded chicken with veggies and pesto. The pesto can be made in minutes by combining all of the ingredients in a food processor. My homemade pesto skips the dairy and nuts found in traditional or store bought pesto, so it will suit more dietary needs. The dairy is simply left out, and the pine nuts are subbed for sunflower seeds (although feel free to use the nuts if you can/prefer). The chicken can be from any leftover chicken you have in your fridge. Leftovers from a whole roasted chicken work perfectly, but any cut will do! After you mix your chicken pesto salad, let it chill in the fridge until ready to serve.

My favorite way to eat it is straight from a bowl along side a green salad.

SAVE PRINT

PESTO CHICKEN SALAD

Author: Hold the Grain

Serves: 4-6

 

INGREDIENTS

• 1-1.5 Pounds chilled precooked chicken (any kind will do)
• 10 Stalks steamed asparagus
• ½ Cup grape tomatoes
• 1 Scallion sliced

Pesto:

• ½ Cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons lemon juice (roughly 1 lemon)
• 1½ Cup fresh basil
• ¼ Cup sunflower seeds (or use pine nuts or walnuts)
• 2 garlic cloves
• Salt and pepper to taste (1/4-1/2 tsp each)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place the chicken in the food processor and pulse a few times to shred the chicken. Transfer to a medium sized mixing bowl.
2. Trim the asparagus ends and place in a pan with ¼ cup of water. Steam until tender. (If you already have leftover steamed asparagus on hand, skip this step). Cut 10 of the steamed stalks into 1-inch pieces and add to the chicken.
3. Slice the grape tomatoes into 2-3 slices and add to the mixing bowl with the sliced scallion.
4. To prepare the pesto, place all of the ingredients into a food processor or blender. Process until you have a well combined pesto sauce. Pour the pesto over the chicken and stir to combine the salad.
5. Chill until ready to be served.

Share on Google Plus

About chef imado

Hello! My Name Is Imad Qaidi, Cooking Holds a certificate of the Moroccan state and I have all the qualifications of the traditional and the modern cuisine of various well-known in the world of cooking states, Best Regards Admin.