Grilled Chicken with Spinach, Pine Nut Pesto

From Everyday Italian by Giada De Laurentis

 

2 boneless chicken breasts                                2 cups spinach leaves, chopped and rinsed

¼ cup pine nuts, toasted*                                 2 TBSP fresh lemon juice

1 to 2 tsp grated lemon peel                              1/3 cup plus 2 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper to taste                                     1/3 cup fresh grated Parmesan

 

*To toast pine nuts, heat your oven to 350 and spread pine nuts on a baking dish.  Bake until golden brown and aromatic, about 5 to 10 minutes.  Check them regularly to be sure they don’t burn!

 

   Heat a grill pan on medium high heat.  Lightly oil the grill pan, sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper.  Grill the chicken until cooked through, about 5 minutes per side.  Combine the spinach, pine nuts, lemon juice, and lemon peel in a food processor.  Lightly pulse.  With the machine running, gradually add 1/3 cup of the oil, blending until the mixture is creamy.  Add salt and pulse.  Put half the pesto into ice cube trays and store in the freezer for future use.  Transfer the rest of the spinach mixture to a medium bowl.  Stir in the Parmesan.  Season the pesto with salt and pepper to taste.  Spread the pesto over each piece of chicken and serve.