Chicken Pesto Empanadas with Homemade (Nut-free) Pesto!
Chicken pesto empanadas are made with shredded chicken, fresh cherry tomatoes, red onion, and covered in homemade pesto, grated parmesan and shredded mozzarella cheese. Serve as a light lunch or appetizer, this recipe is sure to be a crowd pleaser.
While this house is no stranger to picky eaters, there are quite a few cuisines we can all agree upon. Italian and Spanish cuisines are two of them. As a mom, I am always on the hunt for light lunches to add to the mix because I can only serve Dino Nuggets so many times before I start feeling guilty.
But, to be honest, this recipe almost didn’t happen…
A few years ago, I made chicken pesto quesadillas at home for Justin and I, Nora was younger and Sadie was still on pureed foods. The problem was that I used store-bought pesto. And, why is that a problem? Well, because Justin is deathly allergic to nuts!!
No matter how many people look at me sideways when I share the story, I honestly had no idea pesto sauce included various kinds of nuts. So now, I make a nut –free pesto sauce at home. Trust me, it was a looonggg time before Justin worked up the courage to try it (I do not blame him), and now these chicken pesto empanadas are one of his favorites!
TIPS:
- Use a black bean can (or any canned good really) if you’ve misplaced your cookie cutter like me.
- Save extra pie pastry to patch your empanadas in case you over stuff.
- Use the extra pesto for dipping sauce, or marinara sauce. However, Justin and I agreed that a dipping sauce was not needed.
Tools you may need:
Measuring cups and spoons
Vegetable chopper
Baking Sheet
Parchment paper
Ninja Foodi
How to Make Chicken Pesto Empanadas
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Add ½ lb chicken to Ninja Foodi with ¼ cup vegetable stock. Put on pressure cook (high) for 5-7 minutes.
Prepare homemade pesto. Add basil, garlic, parmesan cheese, lemon juice, EVOO, and water to magic bullet or food processor. Blend until smooth.
Dice red onion and tomato.
Place parchment paper on baking sheet, and shred chicken.
Prep pie pastry (cut into circles for the empanadas), and assemble your empanada. Here’s how I layer the ingredients: shredded chicken, pesto, tomato + red onion, shredded mozzarella, and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes, or until edge are golden brown. Flip halfway through
Chicken Pesto Empanadas
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb Chicken breast
- 1 box Pie Pastry
- 1/4 Red Onion
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
Homemade Nut-Free Pesto Sauce
- 2 cups Fresh Basil
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/4 cup EVOO
- 1/3 cup filtered water
- salt + pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Add ½ lb chicken to Ninja Foodi with ¼ cup vegetable stock. Put on pressure cook (high) for 5-7 minutes.
- Prepare homemade pesto. Add basil, garlic, parmesan cheese, lemon juice, EVOO, and water to magic bullet or food processor. Blend until smooth.
- Dice red onion and tomato.
- Place parchment paper on baking sheet, and shred chicken.
- Prep pie pastry (cut into circles for the empanadas), and assemble your empanada. Here’s how I layer the ingredients: shredded chicken, pesto, tomato + red onion, shredded mozzarella, and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
- Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. Flip halfway through.
- Yields 22-24 empanadas.
