Grilled Chicken Pesto Salad

I have so many blogs that I love to read. One blog in particular I like is Little Birdie Secrets. They always have fun crafts, tutorials, recipes, and more. I stumbled across this recipe from their blog this morning and thought you all might like it too!

Ingredients:
Mixed greens and baby spinach
Pesto sauce (see recipe following)
Goat cheese
Fresh, shredded Parmesan cheese
Grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
Grilled Chicken
Toasted pine nuts
Vinaigrette or other dressing (I like Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette)

Make a bed of mixed greens on a dish. Spread pesto sauce on grilled chicken, cut in strips and lay on greens. Add halved tomotoes and toasted pine nuts. Crumble goat cheese over top and finish with a sprinkle of Parmesan. The pesto is so tasty you might not even need dressing!



Homemade Pesto Recipe

2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup pine nuts
2 medium cloves garlic peeled (I used 1/2 the garlic amount to suit my family's taste)
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Combine basil, pine nuts, garlic, and Parmesan in a food processor until finely chopped. With machine running slowly, pour ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil through the feed tube and pulse until combined. If the sauce seems dry (it should be a thick paste) add a little more olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Use immediately or store in the fridge for up to one week.