A 2-for-1 meal: Chicken pesto edition

First of all, I apologize that there are no pictures for this week’s post. I didn’t realize when I was making this meal that this would be the recipe(s) I would post on the blog.

Secondly, if you’ve read my cooking posts lately, you’ve come to realize that I love me some pesto. Like love love. Like it’s up there with Baja Burrito’s tomatillo salsa in my love of green saucy things.

Thirdly, being a single person, I like coming up with recipes that I can eat in more than one way. That’s why I came up with this recipe. Ready for the fun? Let’s go.

First is a recipe for pesto chicken. 1. Whisk together about 1/2 jar of pesto with about 1/2 cup of olive oil. 2. Coat three frozen chicken breasts with this mixture and place in the crock pot. 3. Add about 1/2 cup chicken broth and a 1/2 cup white cooking wine to the crock pot. You can adjust as you feel necessary on these quantities. You just don’t want the chicken to get too dry b/c you’re going to cook it all day and there’s nothing less appetizing than dry chicken. 4. Cook on low heat all day long while you’re at work. When you get home, the chicken will be juicy and basically falling apart. It’s kind of shredded. I enjoyed serving it warm on kaiser rolls with a little bit of shredded mozzarella. You could use whatever bread you wanted, but it’s quite tasty, especially if you’re tired of that same-old, same-old sandwich you bring to lunch every day.

But after you’ve eaten the chicken sandwiches a couple of times, you get a little bored with it, right? That’s when you make chicken pesto pasta and force your friends to come over and eat the feast with you. Here’s the simple way to make the chicken pesto pasta:

1. In a sauce pan, cook 1/2 of a onion (finely chopped) and 2 cloves of garlic (finely chopped) in about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. 2. When the onions are beginning to become transparent, add in the shredded pesto chicken you didn’t use when you making all those pesto chicken sandwiches. 3. Turn down the heat to very low, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of prepared pesto sauce and a teaspoon or so of chicken broth if you think the mixture looks dry. 4. Basically, you just want to get the chicken warm. You’re not trying to cook everything, just warm it through. While the chicken is warming, put some pasta (spaghetti noodles) on to cook. 5. When the pasta noodles are ready, drain using the colander, then toss the spaghetti with the remainder of jar of prepared pesto. 6. When you’re ready to serve the dish, put the pesto-ed spaghetti in the serving dish, then top with the chicken pesto. Sprinkle freshly shredded mozzarella and Parmesan over the top. The spaghetti and chicken will be warm and melt the cheese a little and it is kind of delightful.

And just so I can prove that I did make this dish and people did eat and enjoy it:

That’s Mindy and Rachel. And ya’ll, Rachel has a JOB!

Ingredients: 3 chicken breasts 1 1/2 jars prepared pesto Chicken broth Cooking wine 1/2 onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese to taste

Difficulty level: Easy Time: 15 minutes prep on the chicken; about 30 minutes when making the pasta Soundtrack: Iron Chef playing in the next room