I distinctly remember when I learnt this recipe as it was the first proper meal that I learnt how to cook at uni from one of my mates that I shared halls with. Her name was Rhona and she was one of those people who seemed mature beyond her years. Fitting then that she taught me this dish which at the time seemed very grown up, like real cooking!  And real cooking it was I guess as it’s a dish that has stood the test of time, as satisfying for an 18 year old student on a budget as a 30 something year old lawyer! I keep coming back to this dish even now, I could not miss this one out from my blog as I enter my 20th year of making this chicken pesto and mozzarella pasta dish pretty much exactly as Rhona taught me!  The only addition I make, is that these days I add in some cherry tomatoes and spinach, gotta get your 5 a day in!

Time: 30 minutes

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 2 x chicken breasts

• About 100g pesto (I usually buy the fresh pesto tubs from the supermarket)

• 1 ball of mozzarella, approx 100-150g, sliced in to about 6 slices

• Handful of cherry tomatoes

• Approx 100g fresh baby spinach

• Approx 220g pasta of your choice, I like fusilli or penne.  

• Olive oil

Method

1. Take each chicken breast and using a meat mallet or something with a bit of weight behind it (I usually use the pestle from a pestle and mortar), bash the thickest part of the chicken breast so it flattens and the breast is relatively even in terms of width and approx. 1cm thick throughout. You might find it neater to place the chicken under some baking paper or in a plastic bag. You are not aiming for a really thin piece of chicken, you just want to reduce the thick end and even it out so the breast can cook in the pan evenly.

2. Heat about a teaspoon of olive oil in a frying and place the chicken breasts in to the pan to fry on medium heat. After a few minutes flip to the other side and from time to time turn.

3. Fill a pan with boiling salted water and start the pasta cooking.

4. After about 5-10 minutes, the chicken should be about half way there. Add in the cherry tomatoes to the pan to fry.    

5. After about a further 5 minutes or so, the chicken should be cooked through, it should have some golden colour to it and feel fairly firm. Spoon pesto generously on top of each chicken breast, don’t worry if it starts running down the sides in to the pan.

6. On top of the pesto, add the slices of mozzarella. Try to cover as much of the breast as possible.

7. The tomatoes should have softened and split. Remove form the pan and set aside.

8. Here you have a few options depending on what tools you have at your disposal. For the best result, pop the pan under the grill, the mozzarella will melt and get some lovely colour on top, usually after a few minutes depending how close to the grill you place the pan and how high the heat is. The edges of the mozzarella may even start to fry and crisp up in all the pesto oil. Believe me, these are the best bits! Alternatively, if you do not want to or can’t place your pan under the grill then just leave the pan on the stove and place a lid on top of the pan which will seal in the heat and the mozzarella will still melt nicely though probably won’t achieve the same colour. If both of these options don’t work for you, then just keep the heat low on the stove and in time the cheese should start to melt (but really, I recommend the grill if possible, even if you have to move the chicken to a baking tray to place under the grill).

9. Meanwhile, your pasta should be cooked. Just a few moments before the pasta finishes cooking, add in the baby spinach, essentially just to blanch it. Drain the pasta and spinach and return to the pot.

10. Spoon some pesto in to the pasta and spinach, add in the cherry tomatoes and gently mix. Add as much pesto as you like, I find a big spoonful is enough as there should be some juices and pesto in the pan with the chicken that you can pour over too. The chicken is packed full of flavour and so I think it’s nice to keep the pasta relatively plain so you don’t have pesto overload.

11. Plate up the pasta then place a chicken breast on top, drizzling the excess pesto, juices and mozzarella that is left in the pan over the pasta.

12. If you don’t want the faff of having to cut up the chicken breast in the bowl whilst eating, then instead of placing it whole on the plate, I would suggest first slicing it up on a chopping board. This is much easier if you have kids. As I write this I feel this comes across incredibly lazy, but sometimes I must admit I do this as I just don’t want the hassle of cutting when eating!