Tag-Archive for » Basil «
I came up with this one on the weekend just wanting to do something a little different from my usual roast chicken and I had some veg in the fridge I wanted to use up. I have listed below what I used but you could use anything like eggplant, yellow zucchini, large tomatoes rather than cherry or even baby carrots so feel free to play around with that. I served ours with the vegetables and also some corn on the cob’s, we are trying not to eat to many carbs in the evenings, but it would be nice paired with roasted potatoes as well.
Ingredients
Olive oil
1.5kg Whole chicken
3 Tablespoons basil pesto, homemade or store bought
4 Small red onions, peeled and sliced in half
2 Green zucchini, sliced in wedges
4 Cloves garlic, peeled
200g Cheery tomatoes
Method
1. Pre Heat oven to moderate. Loosen skin on chicken breast by sliding your fingers between the skin and the flesh. Rub about 11/2 tablespoons of Pesto under the skin over the breast.
2. Rub the remaining 11/2 tablespoons of pesto over the outside of chicken, breast, legs and wings.
3. Place halved onions in a roasting pan drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil over and place chicken on top.
4. Roast, uncovered in moderate oven for 30 Minutes.
5. Add garlic and zucchini to roasting pan, drizzle with a little extra oil and return to the oven for about 1 hour or until chicken is coked through.
6. If using cherry tomatoes add to roasting pan about 20 min’s before the end of cooking time.
Serve with fresh corn on the cob and roasted potatoes.
All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.
This is a super simple recipe that can be thrown together in no time at all and is also budget friendly. I did not make the basil pesto from scratch as I had some already made in the fridge, you could also just use store bought basil pesto, to make this recipe even quicker to put together. It is a lovely sauce and goes very well with the gnocchi, we topped ours with extra grated Parmesan cheese for a filling, yummy dinner. If you would like to read more reviews on this recipe or view more photos please click here.
Ingredients
Pesto
2 Cups fresh basil, firmly packed
1/4 Cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
2 Garlic cloves, chopped
1/3 Cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 Cup parmesan cheese, grated
Sauce
2 Teaspoons olive oil
1 Garlic clove, crushed
300ml Cream
500g Potato gnocchi
Salt and pepper
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Fresh basil, to garnish
Lemon wedge, to serve
Method
1. To make the pesto, combine the basil, pinenuts and garlic in a blender or food processor. Process until smooth. With the motor running, slowly pour in the oil. Add the parmesan and process until smooth.
2. Heat the oil in a small pan. Add the garlic and cook over medium heat for 1 minute. Add the cream and 3 tablespoons of the pesto and bring to the boil. Be careful as it will boil over easily. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 3 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, cook the gnocchi according to the packet instructions. Drain and place the gnocchi in a large bowl. Pour on the sauce and toss thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper and stir through the lemon juice just before serving.
Transfer to a serving bowl. Garnish with basil and serve with lemon wedges.
All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.
