Fresh From The Greenhouse: Smoked Chicken Pesto Pasta

Well look who it is! Joining the recipe world!

It is me. Emily. Anthony too. He's smokin' hot and happens to be a really great cook/chef/kitchen master too. I have learned so much from him about cooking and seasoning!

He is a meat connoisseur and I am not...

I am a veggie mama.

We both have different strengths and passions, so that's pretty awesome.

As most of you know, we have started a new journey at a beautiful ranch house in the mountains where we are taking care of a beautiful home and lots and lots of animals. Oh, and an absolutely gorgeous greenhouse. We have put the work in and are now seeing the fruits of our labor as the squash, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes and lots more begin to ripen up.

I polled on Instagram to see if it would be worth it to share the recipes we use for our veggies/herbs/fruits/etc. with the world, and lo and behold... great response.

So here is we go down the recipe rabbit hole. :)

So far we have only gotten to use our jalapenos, and they have been amazing.

BUT, last night we had a NEW CREATION... and it was amazing.

Smoked chicken pesto pasta. #amazing.

Back story on the smoked chicken: Anthony smoked the chicken the day before for about 2 hours at 130/150 degrees F. We heated it up in a skillet with extra virgin olive oil (I usually say frying pan, but I've gotten made fun of 1 too many times to show my redneck anymore) to crisp it up a bit, just FYI. You can also cook the chicken in an instant pot, oven, or however you prefer your guts. But a little bit of smoke or some nice char marks from the grill really bring out the best in meats.

The star of this show is the PESTO. It's amazing.

We made it from scratch and oooed and ahhhed at every. single. bite.

I know why you're really here, so here is the recipe:

Pesto:

2 Cups of fresh basil leaves -remove stems-

2 Tablespoons of walnuts

1/2 Cup of Parmesan cheese

4 large garlic cloves

1 Cup of olive oil

Directions:

1. Add all of the above ingredients to a blender. (We use a Nutribullet... so easy to clean. Hello dishwasher)

2. Blend until ingredients become a saucy mixture. (add extra olive oil as needed)

3. Boil pasta as needed (I recommend brown rice pasta for a healthier substitute to traditional pasta. The difference in glycemic response is significant, and your belly will thank you...guilt free pasta! Who's mad at that?)

4. Cook chicken as desired.

5. Drain pasta and toss lightly in olive oil (to keep pasta from sticking and drying out)

6. Toss/stir in pesto with noodles.

7. Plate noodles and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

8. Add chicken.

9. Squeeze lemon if desired.

10. Marvel at your meal.

I hope you guys enjoy!

Did you try this recipe?? Let me know how it went at emily.emteriors@gmail.com

-xoxo

emily and anthony