, photo by Naomi Sherman
, nutritional review by Franziska Spritzler, RD, CDE
in Recipes, Dinner, Meal Keto pesto chicken casserole with feta cheese and olives
Ingredients
- 1½ lbs 650 g boneless chicken thighs
- salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp 2 tbsp butter or coconut oil
- 1⁄3 cup (2¾ oz.) 80 ml (80 g) red pesto or green pesto
- 1¼ cups 300 ml heavy whipping cream
- 3 oz. (2⁄3 cup) 85 g (150 ml) pitted olives
- 5 oz. (1 cup) 140 g (220 ml) feta cheese, diced
- 1 1 garlic clove, finely choppedgarlic cloves, finely chopped
- 5 oz. (2½ cups) 140 g (600 ml) leafy greens
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add butter or oil to a large skillet and fry the chicken pieces in batches over medium-high heat until golden brown.
- Combine pesto and heavy cream in a bowl.
- Place the fried chicken pieces in a baking dish together with olives, feta cheese and garlic. Add the pesto/cream mixture.
- Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes, until the dish turns bubbly and light brown around the edges.
Tips
A number of low carb, store-bought varieties of pesto are available in most grocery stores.
Red pesto is typically made with basil leaves, tomatoes or sun-dried tomatoes, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, pine nuts, and garlic. Green pesto is typically made with basil leaves, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, pine nuts, and garlic. Look for ones with real olive oil, not soybean oil or canola oil, no sugar, and less than 5 net carbs per serving.
A simple side dish of field greens or crunchy romaine lettuce complements the rich flavors. Lightly sautéed asparagus or green beans work, too.
If you feel like making this dish even heartier you can pair it with cauliflower rice, roasted cauliflower or fried broccoli.
Meal prep
This dish can be prepared by frying the chicken ahead of time. You can assemble the entire casserole and keep in the fridge for a day before baking it. Just make sure you let it come to room temperature before placing in the oven. It's also good to give it a stir since the pesto can sink to the bottom.
If you have chicken or turkey leftovers, they are perfect for this dish. Just skip the first 3 steps of the instructions and take it from there. If you're short on time you can also use a rotisserie chicken. Take the meat off the bones and divide it into bite-sized pieces. Follow the instructions from step 3.
Storing and reheating
If you intend to eat the casserole within 2-3 days you can store it in the fridge. Otherwise it's better to place the casserole in the freezer where it will last up to 3 months. Make sure your casserole dish is suitable for freezing.
If freezing, let thaw in the refrigerator the day before you plan on serving it. Don’t place a cold baking dish straight from the fridge into a hot oven as this can cause your dish to crack. Reheat the casserole in the oven at 300°F (150°C) until thoroughly warm.
457 comments
I echo Dawn's question, "This may be right in my face but where to you see the amount of calories per serving and how many servings per dish?"
Thanks!
Eduardo
If you look at "Ingredients" in the recipe , the first information is the number of servings.
If you hover your mouse pointer over the text "Strict Low Carb" in the picture then you can see the amount of carbs per serving. You can also see the macro nutrient distribution.
http://s13.postimg.org/jgkw2t4vr/Capture.jpg
But you can't see the amount of calories. Theoretically you could calculate the number calories for this dish, it would be approx:
100/3*7*4=933 kcal per serving
We are focusing on the carbs therefore we have no information about calories.
I had a question...I realize that DD is not focusing on calories, but it would be helpful for you to include the nutritional breakdown for those of us keeping track of our macros, i.e. carbs, protein and fat in grams. Thank you and keep up the great work!
I'm so glad I found this website and started the challenge yesterday. I do not have headaches or brain fog; I feel great. I actually normally wake up with headaches, get migraines, and feel tired all the time, but I had so much energy last night that I walked for half an hour before bed. I felt sure I'd sleep in but I was up early and had more energy than usual. No headache either.
I had a very big breakfast this morning because I had to skip lunch; I went for a root canal. So now I'm really hungry and can't wait for supper, lol. I saw someone else comment that they served this over cauliflower rice, and I sure wish I would have read the comments before I made this, because that would have been lovely. I keep thinking this is a dish that needs rice, lol. Oh well; next time.
I think I put too much red pesto because I couldn't figure out the measurements. Next time I'll put half as much, or else just add more chicken. I'm definitely going to try the cauliflower rice with this next time.
I had a romaine lettuce salad with oil and red raspberry wine vinegar as a side dish, and it went great with this meal.
Thank you so much for sharing.
LCHF usually doesn't lower cholesterol but a lot of people get a better cholesterol profile. HDL -> UP, Triglycerides -> DOWN, LDL -> About the same.
You can use either or. If you choose a store-bought jar, compare different brands to find the one with the best ingredient list. Traditionally it should consist of basil, garlic, pine nuts, pecorino or parmesan cheese and olive oil. Good luck!
We put this over spinach to increase our fiber intake. We loved it so much that we ate this for breakfast instead. I didn't get hungry for lunch so I skipped it. My husband got hungry and had eggs, but felt great. It feels so good to be on a diet where I'm not starving, weighing out portions, and not enjoying my food.
I didn't have an issue with the salt, but I also love salt, but I love the cauliflower rice idea. I will have to do that next time.
Day 2 and loving the challenge.
I wish I hadn't done read the comments now as I had to salt the dish and wasn't too keen on it.
The amount of carbs stated are Net carbs (Total carbs -fiber).
We (as a family) have embarked in this low carb lifestyle change and cooking good tasty recipes has been a challenge for us parents, but more so for our children. However, this meal has been one the best yet. It tastes just like chicken alfredo (but without the noodles of course :)! We used "queso fresco" (fresh cheese, common in latin meals), it is less salty and best of all is only 3g of carbs for a cup instead of 6g for feta. I just grated it in a food processor and left some chucks for texture. I made more than needed for other meals later. My oldest daughter could not believe how good this was. Finding recipes like one has helped her stay encouraged throughout these changes. It was quick and easy to put together, that's a plus. We will definitely be making this again! Thank you!
Cubed 1.25 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast; Browned it in coconut oil
added 1/2 cup taste of Thai coconut milk (make sure it is not sweetened it only has 2 carbs per 1/2 cup)
1/2 cup sour cream
1 can sliced water chestnuts (added the crunch I was looking for)
1/8 cup pine nuts (I measured out 1/8 cup then ground them up)
1/2 cup diced rotel tomatoes and Green Chilis
1/2 lime juiced
1/2 tbsp capers
Seasonings (basil, salt and pepper)
4 oz goat cheese
It was just as good as the other recipe. just a combination of flavors that surprisingly worked together. (I tried to add the recipe in my fitness pal but it is down. I will try to post carbs later)