Chicken Tenders a New Favorite. Try them with Pesto

Chicken Tenders are my newest favorite cut of meat.  It is smaller than a breast, so if you can behave it controls your portion and it cooks quickly.  I unfortunately end up having two so it equals a breast.  I have found that I can also get them reasonably priced at Sprouts, my newest favorite grocery store.  They have the cheapest produce in town so it allows me to always have fresh veggies and fruits on hand and I usually can walk out for $25.

Last week I did a chicken satay, which is a peanut sauce, last night I topped the tenders with a Cilantro Pecan Pesto.  Pesto is something I always have in the freezer and sometimes I have multiple flavors.  Currently I have the Cilantro Pecan and Romain Ceasar Pesto in the freezer.  I make it, freeze it in ice cube trays and store them in zip top bags.  It works out perfectly for that quick weeknight meal.  Then when ready I take out a few cubes and microwave 30 seconds to melt.  In this case I used 4 cubes so I had extra sauce for dipping.  I served it with a pasta spinach salad which still needs a bit of work.  It had too much vinegar so when I fine tune it I'll post that next.

PESTO CHICKEN BREASTS
2 bone in chicken breasts
2 T. EVOO
Sprinkled with Salt and Pepper
4 T. pesto sauce (4 frozen cubes)
Grill chicken in a grill pan over medium heat for 4-5 minutes. Meanwhile mix remaining ingredients. Flip chicken, brush with sauce and cook another 3-4 minutes. Use leftover sauce for dipping.

BASIL PESTO
½ C. fresh basil leaves
½ C. pine nuts
¾ C. Parmesan cheese, grated
4 cloves garlic, minced
⅛ t. pepper
¾ C. olive oil

Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender except oil. Add oil very slowly and blend until smooth. Toss on hot or cold pasta for a main dish.

Cilantro Pesto:  Substitute cilantro and pecans for basil and pine nuts.