We’re having pesto-glazed chicken thighs, sautéed green beans and a carrot/beet salad. Extra avocados on the side.
See you at 1:30 PM on Thursday, July 10! This is a pay-what-you-can meal.
BASIL PESTO
4 oz fresh basil leaves
2 large cloves garlic, peeled
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
1/3 cup shredded parmesean cheese
Extra Virgin Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Pull all the leaves off the basil stems and rinse. Place ALL of the rinsed basil inside a food processor along with the garlic, pine nuts and cheese. Pulse in the food processor until the mixture begins to form a thick paste, and all the basil leaves are chopped up into tiny pieces. With the machine running, slowly pour in the olive oil. I like to pour in a few tablespoons, then stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl, and then begin again pouring in the rest of the oil. I add in enough olive oil for it to look like a salad dressing consistency. I’ve never measured how much oil this is. If I had to guess I’d say about 3/4-1 cup? With the machine off…..dip your pinky into it and taste it. Add salt and pepper to taste, and pulse to combine.
**The bottom line with pesto is to make it slightly runnier than you think you need. When it sits in the fridge it will thicken a bit. If I’m planning to use it as a salad dressing then I will add more oil to thin it out. If you want to use it in other recipes you could add less or if you wanted to use it as a spread I’d add less and keep it thicker. You can’t really go wrong here taste wise though. Store ina glass jar in the fridge. This also freezes well.
Pesto Glazed Chicken thighs
1/2-3/4 cup pesto sauce, divided (see above)
8 chicken thighs, extra fat trimmed
A few shakes of salt
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
Trim off any excess fat off the chicken thighs and place in a large mixing bowl. Add in enough pesto sauce to coat all the chicken pieces…about 1/3-1/2 cup. Add in a few shakes of salt and mix it all up good. Let marinate overnight.
When you’re ready to cook, melt half the coconut oil in a large skillet, let it coat the whole bottom of the pan. When it’s hot, cook the thighs, 4 at a time over medium heat. After 4 minutes or so, check the bottoms. If they are nice and browned then flip over and cover cooking the other side for another 3-4 minutes, or until the chicken feels firm when you press on it. Just before removing from the pan, glaze both sides of the chicken with the rest of the pesto sauce and heat another 30 seconds to 1 minute. Repeat with the other half of the chicken.
Sauteed Green Beans
1 pound green beans
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thin
1 tablespoon coconut oil
salt and pepper to taste
Trim the ends off the green beans as preferred. Peel and slice the garlic.
In a large saute pan, warm up 1/2 cup water until boiling. When boiling, add in the green beans and cook for 2-3 minutes on (med/hi) or until the water has evaporated. If the water hasn’t evaporated after 3 minutes just pour it out. Scoot the beans to the side of the pan and add in the oil to the empty side. Let the oil melt and turn the pan to coat the bottom. Add the garlic to the oil and bring the heat down to medium. Saute the beans and garlic until the beans are crisp-done, another 3-4 minutes or so. Salt and pepper to taste.
CARROT BEET SALAD
4 large beets (I used red), peeled
1 lb carrots, peeled
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp coriander
1/8 tsp cinnamon
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 Tablespoons coconut oil
salt and pepper
4 green onions, sliced thin
Peel the beets and cut off any pieces of the stem still attached to the top. Slice each beet into 1/2 inch thick disks. Place all beets into a large sauce pan or soup pot, and cover with water. Bring the pot to a simmer over medium-high heat and continue to simmer for 5 minutes. The beets will still be a little undercooked at this point. Drain the beets and set aside.
Peel the carrots and cut into 1/2 inch thick coins. In a large saute pan over medium heat, melt 1 Tablespoon of the coconut oil. While the oil is melting, in a small bowl mix together the cumin, coriander and cinnamon. After the oil is melted, add in half of the minced garlic along with half the spice mixture. Mix often so the garlic doesn’t burn, and cook the spices for about a minute. Then add in the carrots and turn to coat them all with the spice and garlic mixture. Add in a splash of water and cover, cooking for about 4-6 minutes, or until the carrots are cooked but still slightly firm in the middle. (While the carrots are cooking, chop the cooked beets into 1-inch pieces). When the carrots are done, pour them out into your desired serving bowl. To the same pan, melt the other 1 tablespoon coconut oil and the other half of the garlic and spice mixture. Cook for one minute and then add in the chopped beets. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over them and cook for 2 minutes or until firm-done. Then add the beets to your carrots and mix well. Sprinkle the top with your chopped green onions and you are ready to go!!
**The main reason I cooked the beets and carrots separately in the saute pan is so they both retain their color, and the end result is prettier with the orange and the red beets. If you cook them together, the beets color will run and make the carrots pink. This is not really a big deal, so if you don’t care you can cook them together and save yourself a few minutes.