Grilled Chicken with Spinach and Pine Nut Pesto

School has started around here (for the most part), but grilling weather has not stopped! Nope, it's still perfect grilling weather (in fact, my husband will grill in ANY weather - including snow and ice!) so grilling around here never really stops. I love grilled boneless, skinless chicken breasts, and its versatility makes it a great choice any night of the week. Often boneless, skinless chicken breasts can easily result in a flavorless, dry piece of meat, but it doesn't have to be that way! This recipe elevates your boring chicken to a whole new level and with one of my favorite sauces...pesto! Pesto is so versatile; make it out of spinach, arugula, kale or even cilantro. Pesto...it's not just for basil anymore! This spinach pesto is super-mild but rich and creamy, so it's a great choice if you've never tried pesto before. In other good news, it can be whipped up in a jiffy in your food processor or blender. Just add all the ingredients but the olive oil, pulse for a few seconds then slowly stream in the olive oil and <boom> you are a pesto queen (or king)! Leftover pesto can be frozen for use at a later date, spread onto sandwiches, mixed into scrambled eggs, tossed with pasta or even used as a sauce for pizza. Explore the world of pesto! It really is a diverse sauce that will turn you into a kitchen rock star. Who doesn't want to be a rock star, right? Well, I don't (too much attention for me) but a kitchen rock star...well, I'll take that title any day!

Grilled Chicken with Spinach and Pine Nut Pesto (adapted from foodnetwork.com)

6 (6 oz.) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/3 c. plus 2 T. olive oil, divided
2 t. salt, divided
1 t. pepper, divided
 2 c. lightly packed baby spinach
1/4 c. pine nuts, toasted
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Drizzle the chicken breasts with 2 T. olive oil then season with 1 t. salt and 1/2 t. pepper. 

Heat a grill pan or outdoor grill over medium high heat (375-400 degrees). Add chicken to pan or grill and cook 6 minutes on each side or until the thickest part of the chicken is 165 degrees as measured with a meat thermometer.

In the meantime place the spinach, remaining 1 t. salt, remaining 1/2 t. pepper, pine nuts, lemon zest, lemon juice and Parmesan in a food processor or blender and pulse to combine. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Scrape down the sides of the bowl or blender and pulse to combine one more time. Serve 1 T. of the pesto on top of each chicken breast (recipe makes about 1 c.).

6 servings (302 calories each serving) according to my calculator on loseit.com)
1 T. pesto is 66 calories 
I served this with a variation of my Mediterranean Farro Salad.