It’s July 2nd and very hot in Brooklyn. It was time to top/pinch out the growing tips of all my basil. Here are some of the tops that I got:
I made The Husband’s favorite Pesto Lime Leaf Chicken Salad. The one he says he’s been waiting for his whole life. My pesto is made without cheese so that it freezes well. You can always add parmigiana as needed when you serve it. Here’s the recipe – this makes enough pesto to put some away for pasta or whatever creative ideas you may have the next day:
Pesto Lime Leaf Chicken Salad
Ingredients
Pesto Lime Leaf Chicken Salad
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2 whole chicken breasts – boiled in salted water, then diced
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2 cups (packed) basil leaves
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8 cloves garlic
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1/2 cup pine nuts (I used walnuts because that’s what I had)
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2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
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2 tbsp Lime Leaf Sambal
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1 tsp kosher salt
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1/2 tsp fresh-ground pepper
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1/2 cup mayonnaise
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1/2 red onion – diced small
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1/2 cup raisins (optional)
Directions
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Add the basil, garlic, nuts, olive oil, salt and pepper to a food processor and blend to the consistency that you like. Scrape down the sides of the bowl once in the middle of blending to incorporate any large chunks.
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Into a large bowl add the chicken, three or four heaping tablespoons of the pesto, the Lime Leaf Sambal, salt, pepper, mayonnaise, onion and raisins. Mix to incorporate well.
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Serve in a sandwich or on a salad. Wasn’t that easy?
Recipe Note
I had a little over a cup of pesto left over, which I tossed with some linguine for my pasta-loving kid. I LOVE cooking for my family. (That’s code for “I can’t wait for this pandemic to be over so I can go back to not being a short-order cook!”)
