Recipe: Pumpkin Seed Basil Pesto Chicken

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Diet Type – Paleo 

This recipe is the perfect spring/summer recipe for you to start flooding your body with nutrition, balance your blood sugar levels, and help keep you satiated for hours after you finish this meal. 

This delicious dish provides you with an abundance of high-quality protein from pastured chickens, a good dose of linoleic acid from the pumpkin seeds to aid in mitochondrial functioning, contains the perfect balance of fatty acids for your cell and mitochondrial membranes, and includes a whole heap of phytonutrients from organically grown basil. 

Did you know that basil is not only anti-inflammatory but it also has anti-cancer effects, has been shown to help patients with depression, improves skin health, aids in digestion and liver detoxification, AND helps to balance blood sugar levels? Who wouldn’t want to include this health-promoting meal into their daily food routine?

Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 10 boneless and skinless chicken thighs (Sunworks Farms) 
  • 1 head red leaf lettuce, washed 
  • 5 green onions, chopped 
  • 2 cups pumpkin seeds 
  • 2 cups organic fresh basil 
  • 1 clove garlic 
  • 1 lemon, juiced 
  • 1 tsp sea salt 
  • 1/2 – 3/4 cup BodyBio Balanced oil use Hoffman-P at checkout for a discount!

Procedure

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F
  2. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and lay chicken thighs evenly on your tray.
  3. Bake for 30-35 min or until done. 
  4. While chicken is cooking, gather a food processor and add pumpkin seeds, garlic, and sea salt. Process until you reach a flour consistency. Add fresh basil, lemon juice, and olive oil. Blend until smooth.
  5. When chicken is done and has cooled, slice each piece into strips and transfer to a mixing bowl. Cover with pesto and stir to combine. 
  6. Lay lettuce cups on serving plates and fill with a generous portion of basil chicken. Top with green onion and serve immediately.

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