Pesto Roast Chicken with Roasted Baby Potatoes

A simple yet delicious meal to make. It's even simpler if you use store-bought pesto. I made mine fresh because that was how the idea began - with a bag of basil in the fridge!

Serves 2
Ingredients
2 chicken breasts or thighs (I prefer the juiciness of the breast meat but I used thighs this time simply because I already had some in the fridge)
1 cup loosely packed basil
2-3 garlic cloves
1/4 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
Salt to taste

1/4 cup white wine
1 scant tbsp flour (maida)

8-10 baby potatoes (or 2 regular-sized ones, washed and dried
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp rosemary
Salt and black pepper to season

Method
Clean, wash and dry the chicken. Using a sharp knife, make 2 or 3 shallow incisions on the surface of both sides of the chicken. Place in a large bowl. Heat a small frying pan and lightly toast the pine nuts - about 3 minutes. In a blender or mixie, put in the basil and garlic and grind until the mix is roughly chopped. Add the olive oil and do a quick mix. Now add the pine nuts, salt and pepper, and grind until you have a smooth mixture. Mix in the Parmesan and adjust seasoning.

Reserving about a tbsp of the pesto, put the mix in the bowl with the chicken, and mix to coat chicken well. Using your hands works best so you can rub the pesto into the chicken, making sure to get some into the cuts. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Parboil potatoes and set aside. (About 5 minutes at full power in a 900W microwave).

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. In a large baking dish, toss the olive oil, potatoes, rosemary, salt and pepper. Push the potatoes to the edges of dish. Place the chicken in the centre. Bake for 25 - 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked. You should also have a nice, lightly browned crust. Remove the chicken and potatoes to separate dishes and keep warm while you whip up the sauce.
Pour the wine into the baking dish and scrape up all the brown bits. Put in a small saucepan and heat. Mix the flour with a little liquid, blend well, and add to the remaining liquid making sure there are no lumps. Continue cooking until the sauce thickens to a pouring consistency. Strain to remove all the bits. Check and adjust seasoning.

Serve with the potatoes on the side and the sauce drizzled over the top.