Baked chicken pesto bites
These pesto chicken bites are packed full of the yummy flavours we adore in pesto: basil, pine nuts and Parmesan cheese, while also having a crispy, light breadcrumb coating. Easy to make and no hassle to cook – as they bake in the oven – they’re a tasty and healthy family dinner.
Servings 4 people
Ingredients
- 4 chicken fillets
- 200 grams pesto (ready made or homemade - see below)
- 100 grams breadcrumbs
Quick homemade basil and spinach pesto (optional)
- 35 grams pine nuts
- 25 grams fresh basil leaves
- 25 grams fresh spinach leaves
- 35 grams Parmesan cheese
- ½ clove garlic
- 100 ml olive oil
- salt and pepper
Instructions
Quick homemade basil and spinach pesto (optional)
- Blend the pine nuts, basil, spinach and garlic together with the first 50 ml of olive oil.
- Using a spatula scrape the mixture off of the edges of the mixer and keep blending until smooth.
- Then add the remaining 50 ml of oil slowly, followed by the Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste.
- You should end up with a smooth and creamy pesto.
Baked chicken pesto bites
- Preheat oven to 180°C or (350°F) fan setting.
- Chop the chicken fillets into cubes or chunky short strips.
- Place the pieces in a bowl and add in 1 tablespoon of pesto for each chicken fillet. If you’re using 4 chicken fillets, you would add in 4 full tablespoons of pesto.
- Mix the chicken pieces and pesto well until all the pieces are covered. Set aside.
- In a mixer, give the breadcrumbs a quick whizz until they’re a fine crumb. Lay them out on a shallow bowl or plate.
- Take each pesto covered chicken piece and roll it in the breadcrumbs until coated.
- Then place them on an oven tray, lined with baking paper.
- Cook on the middle shelf of your preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, until the pieces are cooked through and golden.
- Serve with a pesto dip. These bites also go well with a tomato mozzarella salad or herby couscous.
Notes
If you have a child with tree nut allergies, but want to make the homemade pesto, then you can replace the pine nuts in the recipe with sunflower seeds. They're just as tasty.