Baked Crispy Pesto Chicken Recipe

My friend April, also known as The Tipsy Housewife, is always talking about "fridge forage" meals.  You know what I mean, it's when you need to go to the store, but don't have time, so you start digging through the fridge and pantry to see what you can come up with.  LOL  I find myself doing this a lot, and to be honest, some of my best recipes have come from of it. What is it Plato is quoted as saying?  "Necessity is the mother of invention."  Anyway, today's Baked Crispy Pesto Chicken Recipe is the PERFECT example of a "fridge forage" meal.       

I had this chicken that I needed to use, but was lacking in ingredients.  After digging in the pantry and finding a jar of pesto and panko, inspiration struck and this Baked Crispy Pesto Chicken was born.  I know you're going to love it so...

Let's get started!



For this Baked Crispy Pesto Chicken Recipe you will need a few simple ingredients:

• 1 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast per person
• 1 6oz jar of Pesto Sauce
• 1c Mozzarella Cheese, shredded (or more)
• 1 c Panko Bread Crumbs
• Salt and Pepper, to taste

To begin you will need to preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

Next you will need to place your chicken into a greased baking dish.

Season with salt and...

pepper.

Now in a separate mixing bowl combine the pesto with 1/4c of the cheese.

Mix it all together.

Spread the pesto and cheese mixture over your chicken breasts.

I love using pesto in recipes because each little jar is PACKED full of flavor!  Garlic, cheese, herbs, oil, seasonings, everything you need in one big punch!

Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the chicken.

Now add the panko bread crumbs.

To help the bread crumbs brown in the oven, I like to spritz them with a little cooking spray.

This next step is totally optional, but I also added a little chili flake for heat.

Place the baking dish, uncovered, in the oven and...

Bake for 30 minutes.

Pesto! (see what I did there)

You have a Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!  I served this Baked Crispy Pesto Chicken Recipe with some mashed potatoes and green beans, but a nice salad and roasted broccoli would be great too!  I should let you know that my husband, who is not the biggest fan of pesto, went in for seconds because it's that good! So head on into your pantry, dig out the goods, and get creative tonight with this Baked Crispy Pesto Chicken Recipe.  Also, I would love to hear what some of your favorite "fridge forage" meals are, so leave them in the comments below.

And as always...

Happy Reading, Happy Eating, and Happy Living,
~The Kitchen Wife~