Pesto Chicken Salad

I was at Costco yesterday and grabbed a jar of their basil pesto.  It is SO good!!  It tastes so fresh and is not too oily.  It is delicious over pasta or in scrambled eggs or just slathered on a toasted baguette. But, I was thinking about what I could do with it that was a bit different and I thought of chicken salad-one because I had a fresh rotisserie chicken sitting on my counter and two I LOVE chicken salad.  Side note-If any of you live in Dallas and are chicken salad aficionados, Kubys has the best in the world! So, back to the recipe…I decided to come up with a quick chicken salad recipe using basil pesto and this is what I came up with.  It is simple, has few ingredients and is quick to make! 3 wins in my book.

You can always make your own pesto-I have a great recipe, but if you don’t have the basil on hand or just don’t want that extra step then store bought pesto is just as delicious.  There are a ton of brands, but I do love Costcos!

If you want to grill or oven roast your chicken that works great or if you have left over chicken throw it in this recipe.  I just happened to have a rotisserie chicken and it was cooked and easy to shred and you know me I like easy!

Here’s to Spring! Enjoy!

Pesto Chicken Salad

A delicious use for that spring basil pesto. Makes the perfect lunch or lite dinner!

Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1 rotisserie chicken, shredded or 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cooked and shredded
  • 2 celery stalks chopped
  • 1/2 cup pesto
  • 1/4 cup Mayonnaise
  • 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 Tablespoon pine nuts (or walnuts chopped)
  • 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl combine all ingredients.

  2. This tastes even better the next day after all the flavors have melded.  Serve on bread or over greens.