Pesto sauce gives a wonderfully intense flavor to this dish and reveals its deep color when the chicken breast is sliced open, while a tomato, basil and red onion salsa adds refreshing piquancy.
ingredients
serves: 4
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, about 6 ounce each
7/8 cup ricotta cheese
5 tablespoons pesto sauce
2 teaspoons olive oil
Black pepper
2 beef tomatoes
1 small red onion
1 clove garlic
A small handful of basil leaves
1 loaf Italian bread
method
1. Preheat the grill. Cut a deep slit length ways down the side of each chicken breast to make a pocket.
2. Put the ricotta cheese into a small bowl with 1 tablespoon of pesto sauce and mix them together. Spoon a quarter of the mixture into each breast pocket, then fold the chicken over to enclose the filling.
3. Place the breasts in an oiled grill pan, brush with the olive oil and season with pepper. Cook under a fairly hot grill for 7 - 8 minutes each side until cooked through.
4. Meanwhile, rinse and finely chop the tomatoes, then peel and finely chop the onion and garlic, mix them together and season with pepper. Rinse and tear the basil leaves and add to the salsa.
5. Cut four slices of bread and spread them with the remaining pesto. Place the grill rack over the chicken, lay the bread on top and grill until beginning to brown. Serve with the chicken and salsa.
more information
Use a food processor to speed up the chopping of the tomatoes, onion and garlic, but take care to process each of them for just a few seconds, to leave some texture in the salsa.
