Foodie Friday - Basil Pesto Chicken Sandwich

FOODIE FRIDAY!

Basil Pesto Chicken
& Mozarella Sandwich

by Resident Chef James Wood

Happy Friday everyone! Today I am sharing my version of Basil Pesto and then I will incorporate it into a tasty chicken sandwich.

First, let us start off with the pesto… Here is a list of what you need…

4 ounces of Basil (usually sold in a 4 ounce box at the market)

4 ounces of spinach

4 ounces of pecorino romano

2 ounces parmesano reggiano

5 garlic cloves

1/2 teaspoon of chili flakes

1+1/4 cups extra virgin olive oil

1 large lemon

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper

and a food processor

This costs about $8-9 to make in my neck of the woods up here in Seattle, but, it yields about 24 ounces of fresh pesto! At about $0.38/ounce thats pretty awesome. Plus, this is a ingredient that has tons of uses AND freezes extremely well!

Step 1

Place the chunks of parmesan and pecorino in your food processor with bottom blade attachment and turn on. Let run until very small pebbles have been created.

Step 2

Add the garlic and pulse until incorporated

Step 3

Add the basil, stems and all!!! Pulse until broken down and then add the spinach and repeat. (***I use spinach because it has a neutral flavor compared to the basil and you can double the size of your recipe without putting a damper on your grocery bill! But if you're feeling sassy…. Just double the basil!)

Step 4

Add the juice of the lemon, pepper flakes, salt and pepper and turn the processor to the on position and let run.

Step 5

Slowly drizzle the olive oil into the processor until you have a smooth consistency and let run for about 15-20 additional seconds.

That is it! Simple, easy and packed with flavor! Transfer to a storage container.

***A trick we use in the the restaurants is to take a small piece of plastic film and place it over the surface of the pesto before you put on a lid so it can keep the beautiful vibrant green color without the risk of oxidation. Lasts for a week in the fridge and up to a month in the freezer.

Now for the Pesto Chicken Sandwich with fresh Mozzarella and Roma Tomatoes

What you need to serve 4…

4 ciabatta or torta rolls

2 chicken breasts

2 ounces mayonnaise

2 ounces of FRESH PESTO

2 Roma Tomatoes

8 slices of fresh mozzarella (*** you can purchase this in 2-1 pound logs at Cosco for $7.99 instead of paying $5.99 for a 5 ounce ball at the grocery store.)

Olive Oil

Red Wine Vinegar

Salt and Pepper

Pre-Heat your oven to 350

1. Mix the mayo and pesto together

2. Slice 2 chicken breasts in half and place on plastic film as pictured, put another piece of plastic on the top and pound with a tenderizer until they are even. Place in a vessel and drizzle with oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.

 

3. Heat up a skillet, slice your rolls in half and drizzle with olive oil then toast in the skillet and set aside.

4. In the same skillet (because it is already hot) start to sear your chicken breasts, flip over, place the cheese on top and then toss it in the oven for about 4-5 minutes.

5. While chicken is finishing in the oven, dress your bread with the pesto mayonnaise.

6. Once chicken is thoroughly cooked thru, finish assembling your sandwich and serve.

I accompanied mine with a simple salad with oil and vinegar.

Enjoy!!!

Have a great weekend and a great St. Patty's Day.

James

James with wife Lisa

Foodie Friday - Pizza Night!

FOODIE FRIDAY!

PIZZA NIGHT
by Resident Chef James Wood

Greetings,

If there's one food I think I could eat everyday for the rest of my life it would be pizza!

I will include how to make my dough and the step by step procedures to prepare this weekly tradition in my house.

For the dough

1 cup luke warm water

1 package of red star fast acting yeast

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon sugar

2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

For the Toppings.... Now that's completely up to you. Just remember... Less is more when it comes to topping pizza. I like light and flavorful, not a heavy greasy take out style pie but that's me.

Step 1

In a mixer add water, yeast, olive oil, salt and sugar and let sit for about 3-5 minutes so the yeast can bloom.

Step 2

Add the A.P. and whole wheat flour and mix for about 90 seconds to 2 minutes.  It should look like this when ready.  (notice how it just stopped sticking to the bowl, that means its ready!)

Step 3

Place on board and shape into a tube, then cut in half.

Step 4
Knead the dough into balls.

Then place the balls into 2 presprayed containers and spray the top of the balls as well. Put lid on the containers and place in the refrigerator for 2 hours until dough has doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 435 degrees.

Stretching/Rolling the dough:

Step 5

Spray 2 pizza pans with pan spray then place the balls in flour and pat them off and place them in the middle of the pans.

Step 6

Stretch the dough with your hands or roll out with a pin if you don't trust yourself. Then drizzle with olive oil.

Brush oil to evenly coat the crust and bake for 7 minutes.  I like to season mine with salt and pepper.

Topping your pizza:

Now that you have a blank canvas you can go nuts with whatever you like, seriously get creative and post what you made.   It's fine to use tomato sauce in a jar that's what I do in a pinch.

I put roast chicken, caramelized onions, bacon, artichoke hearts and tomatoes on mine because it's my wife's favorite. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes and you will have a gourmet pizza at a pauper price of just around $4/pizza.

 

Say good bye to pre fabricated and hello to fresh.

Cheers and have a great weekend!

James Wood

cookinwood@gmail.com

James with his wife Lisa.

Foodie Friday coming soon!

Coming Soon........

Resident Chef James Wood in Foodie Friday!

James will share his fabulous recipes for you all to try.  He has 15 years in the restaurant business.  So he knows what he is talking about.

Any recipes you want to see?  Dinners, sweets, side dishes?