Quick and Easy Dinner: Chicken with Pesto and Tomatoes

Dinnertime, everyone!  Alright, this dish is going to seem complicated by the list of ingredients, but it's really not.  Everything on this list is something that I already had in my kitchen or pantry and once you get everything laid out, it's not that complicated.  The longest part of this dish is the cooking, so you can get everything ready for the food processor while the chicken and pasta are cooking. 

I love this dish!  It is so tasty and it really is one of my favorite go-to recipes.  Plus, it offers a healthy, homemade alternative to pesto, which can often be full of fat (and you never really know what's in it when you buy the stuff from the store).

Chicken with Pesto and Tomatoes

4 servings

Ingredients

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into four servings (about 4 oz. each)

1/4 c plus 1 t olive oil

1/4 t cinnamon

salt and pepper

spinach (about 1 bag)

1 c whole-wheat pasta, like penne

1/3 walnuts

1/4 Parmesan cheese

2 garlic cloves

2 t tomato paste

1 g grated lemon zest

1 T lemon juice

1 pint cherry tomatoes

Pre-heat oven to 425.  Lay chicken in an oven-safe baking dish and drizzle with 1 t olive oil, 1/8 t cinnamon, and a dash of salt and pepper.  Cook for about 15-20 minutes until no longer pink.  While chicken is cooking, begin to boil a pot of water.  In a food processor, combine walnuts, cheese, garlic, tomato paste, lemon zest and juice, 1/8 t cinnamon, and 1/4 each of salt and pepper.  Once water begins to boil in the pan, put spinach leaves in the water until they wilt (this will only take a few seconds).  Transfer wilted leaves into the food processor, bring water back to a boil, and put pasta in the water to cook for about 10 minutes.  Start food processor to blend ingredients together; while the motor is running, slowly pour in 1/4 c olive oil.  If needed, add water to thin out pesto.  

 Drain pasta, add tomatoes and pesto to the pot and heat until tomatoes and sauce are warm.  Once chicken is cooked, slice and put on the plate, top with pesto and divide pasta and tomatoes evenly.