Basic Fresh Pesto

 

I love Fresh Pesto,  This is a tried and true recipe for sure.  ~Shelly

Ingredients

2 cups fresh basil leaves (no stems)
2 tablespoons pine nuts or walnuts
2 large cloves garlic
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 Tsp salt
1/4 Tsp coarse pepper
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese 

Preparation

1. Chop up the basil, nuts and garlic really well first
2. Combine basil leaves, pine nuts or walnuts and garlic in a food processor and process until very finely minced.
   
   
3. With the machine running slowly dribble in the oil and process until the mixture is smooth.  
   Pesto is supposed to be a bit chunky, not super-smooth
   
   
4. Add the cheese and process very briefly, just long enough to combine. Store in refrigerator or freezer.
   
   
   

NOTES
Instead of 2 cups fresh basil, reduce basil to 1 1/2  cups and add 1/2 c fresh parsley leaves.

Pine nuts are traditional in pesto but they’re pricey. You can absolutely use walnuts or pecans instead. Whichever nut you choose, make sure you toast them first. Get out a small pan, add your nuts, put it over medium-low heat and cook, stirring often, until you can smell them.

Pesto freezes beautifully. You can go the ice cube tray route, if you have enough ice cube trays. Just fill the trays with pesto and freeze. Once frozen, pop the cubes out and seal them in a freezer bag. What I usually do instead of ice cube trays is to transfer the unfrozen pesto into a freezer bag. Lay it flat in the freezer and go and squeeze it around every hour or so. When it is nearly fully frozen, I break it into pieces inside the bag. Then those pieces are the future pesto portions. (If you forget to go in and break up the pesto before it freezes solid, don’t worry. Take it out and defrost it a bit. Then break it up and put it back into the freezer).

Creative Ways to Use Pesto

1. Creative Ways to Use Pesto. Stir a Scoop Into Soup. 
2. Spread on Bread. Sure, you can add a few leaves of basil to your sandwich, but pesto adds additional flavors that really take a sandwich to the next level. 
3. Use as a Veggie Dip.
4. Stir Into Mashed Potatoes. 
5. Stuff Chicken Breast. 
6. Enjoy with Eggs. 
7. Toss with Pasta.
   
   
   

This recipe comes from The NY times.

Shredded Chicken Enchiladas

These enchiladas will also freeze very well and they're pretty simple to make.  To freeze, just go through all the directions up to adding the sauce back over the tortillas — that way, when you defrost, they aren’t all soggy.  Just freeze the enchiladas and the sauce separately and you’ll be good to go.

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic minced
1 can enchilada sauce 1 1/2 cups, I use Mild
kosher salt to coat the chicken
ground black pepper to coat the chicken
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese divided
1 cup shredded Monterrey jack cheese divided
1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp. fresh cilantro roughly chopped, divided
2-4 tbsp vegetable oil for quickly frying the tortillas
12 6- inch corn tortillas
cooking spray
optional: sour cream for garnish

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Add the minced garlic to the enchilada sauce in a deep skillet and heat to boiling. Generously sprinkle kosher salt and ground black pepper over the chicken breasts and then nestle the chicken breasts into the sauce. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the chicken is cooked through, about 15-20 minutes. Remove the chicken from the sauce, set aside and let both the chicken and the sauce cool.
3. Using two forks, shred the chicken breasts by holding one fork steady and slowly scraping the other fork, prongs faced backwards, away from the other fork (see picture above). Transfer the shredded chicken to a large bowl. Add half the enchilada sauce, 1/2 cup each of the Monterrey jack and cheddar cheeses and the 1/2 cup of cilantro to the shredded chicken. Stir to combine.
4. Lightly fry each tortilla quickly in a skillet using 1 tbsp. of the vegetable oil. Quickly pat dry and then roll as directed.
5. Using cooking spray (or olive oil), grease a 9-inch x 13-inch baking dish. Spoon about 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture along the center of the tortilla. Gently, but firmly, roll the tortilla around the filling and place into the baking dish, seam-side down. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
6. Lightly spray the exposed tortillas with cooking spray (or brush lightly with olive oil). This will help the tortillas turn golden in the oven and will also help keep them from cracking. Place baking dish in the oven, uncovered, for 8-10 minutes or until the tortillas begin to turn golden.
7. Reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Remove the baking dish from the oven. Pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas and sprinkle remaining cheese over the sauce. Sprinkle with 1 tbsp. fresh cilantro. Lightly cover baking dish with aluminum foil and place into the oven for 20 minutes. Carefully remove foil after 20 minutes and bake, uncovered, for an additional 5-10 minutes or until the cheese is golden.
8. Remove from the oven and let stand 5-10 minutes prior to serving. Feel free to add a dollop (or two!) of sour cream and some more chopped cilantro for a garnish if you'd like.

Enjoy!



This shredded chicken enchiladas recipe comes from the Blog, A SWEET PEA.

https://www.asweetpeachef.com/