Healthy goat cheese and pesto crusted chicken for a nourishing and easy meal. Ready in 20 minutes, this flavorful chicken dish is juicy, tender, crispy, and protein packed. Serve it with a fresh salad or roasted vegetable side for a quick and comforting dinner!
Best pesto & goat cheese crusted chicken
We love easy chicken dinner recipes over here at Healthful Blondie! Nothing beats a quick and delicious chicken recipe. That is why I am so excited to share this fancier, but simple crusted chicken! It is tender, crispy, and juicy! The goat cheese melts in your mouth and the pesto flavor is wonderful.
If you love pesto and goat cheese you are going to adore this crusted chicken recipe. My family. andI make it weekly now. Yes, it is that dang good!
Weather you are meal prepping this recipe or cooking for the whole family, you can easily double and triple this recipe. Maybe whip this fancy crusted chicken up for a date night for two! Whoever you make it for, they will be thanking you a million times over. Cannot wait to hear what you think!
Is goat cheese healthy?
Yes, eating goat cheese in moderation is absolutely healthy! I mean, the word “healthy” is all relative, but I consider this recipe to be super nutritious. This goat cheese and pesto crusted chicken has many health benefits from high protein, to calcium and selenium from the goat cheese to vitamin A and vitamin C from the fresh pesto. This dish is nourishing and deliciously health friendly.
Ingredients in goat cheese crusted chicken
You’ll only need a few, simple ingredients to get this easy 20 minute dinner recipe going! I am all about simplicity and ease, so don’t worry, you won’t need to go to the supermarket and buy a lot of expensive ingredients and spices. For this healthy crusted chicken recipe, you are going to need some goat cheese, your favorite pesto, and some seasonings! Here is an example list of the ingredients you’ll need:
- Chicken breasts
- Soft goat cheese
- Pesto (I love Trader Joe’s vegan kale pesto)
- Panko bread crumbs, gluten-free or regular
- Italian seasoning
- Salt & pepper
- Olive oil
How to make healthy goat cheese and pesto crusted chicken
You only need one bowl, a saute pan and an oven to make this quick 20 minute dinner. Here, Ill walk you through how to make crusted goat cheese & pesto chicken.
To start, preheat the oven to 425°F.
Then, in a large mixing bowl, combine the panko breadcrumbs, soft goat cheese, fresh basil pesto, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Mix together and form two equal-sized patties. If too dry to form patties, add 1 teaspoon of olive oil to the mixture. Set them to the side while you prepare your chicken.
Now let’s prepare the chicken by patting the chicken breasts dry with a paper towel and season both sides with salt and pepper.
In a large saute pan, heat olive oil to medium. When the oil is hot, add the chicken to the pan and cook for 3 minutes. Flip the chicken breasts and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Then, turn off the heat.
Carefully place and shape the goat cheese and pesto patties on each chicken breast. Use a spoon the make sure it is evenly spread.
Finally, place the pan into the oven and cook for 8 – 10 min, until the crust has browned and the chicken breasts are thoroughly cooked. For extra crispness broil at 500F for 1 – 2 minutes. Use an oven mitt to carefully remove the pan from the oven.
Serve delicious goat cheese crusted chicken immediately with your favorite roasted vegetable or a fresh tomato salad, and enjoy!
Tips for making crusted chicken
Getting the perfect crispy crust on a chicken is actually really easy! Here are my tips on how to cook super moist and tender chicken with a crispy and crunchy breaded crust:
- Sear your chicken first before topping with the goat cheese pesto crust. This will make sure the chicken is super tender before getting the crust super crispy in the oven!
- Make sure your goat cheese pesto crust is not too wet or else it will just slide off. Be sure to follow the instructions and make a patty by hand before topping your chicken.
- Don’t skip out on the olive oil!
How to meal prep and store leftover pesto crusted chicken
Pesto and goat cheese crusted chicken breasts make for the best meal prep! You can easily double or triple this recipe if you are prepping meals for the entire week.
Simply separate each chicken breast into airtight containers and store them in the fridge for 4 – 5 days. When you are ready to enjoy your healthy crusted chicken, warm up in the microwave or in the oven for 10 minutes at 350F.
Did you make this recipe?
If you make this recipe, be sure to comment and rate it down below. Also, don’t forget to tag me @healthfulblondie on Instagram and use the hashtag #healthfulblondie so I can see your delicious creation and share it with my followers!
Looking for other healthy dinner recipes? Check these out!
Need some more tasty and healthy dinner, lunch, or meal prep ideas? Here are some of my favorite Healthful Blondie dinner recipes to try out….
Harissa Shrimp With Cauliflower & Broccoli Couscous
Healthy Stuffed Chicken Parmesan Burgers
Sheet Pan Chicken With Crispy Balsamic Glazed Brussel Sprouts
Goat Cheese & Pesto Crusted Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts, skinless
- 2 oz soft goat cheese, not crumbled
- 2 Tbsp pesto, I love Trader Joe’s vegan kale pesto
- 2 Tbsp panko, gluten-free or regular
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp salt, more to taste
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the panko breadcrumbs, goat cheese, pesto, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Mix together and form two equal-sized patties. If too dry to form a patty, add 1 teaspoon of olive oil to the mixture. Set them to the side while you prepare your chicken.
- Pat your chicken breasts dry with a paper towel and season both sides with salt and pepper.
- In a large saute pan, heat olive oil to medium. When the oil is hot, add the chicken to the pan and cook for 3 minutes. Flip the chicken breasts and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Turn off the heat.
- Carefully place and shape the goat cheese and pesto patties on each chicken breast. Use a spoon the make sure it is evenly spread.
- Place the pan into the oven and cook for 8 - 10 min, until the crust has browned and the chicken breasts are thoroughly cooked. For extra crispness broil at 500F for 1 - 2 minutes. Use an oven mitt to carefully remove the pan from the oven.
- Serve immediately with your favorite vegetable or tomato salad, and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by Tati Chermayeff / Healthful Blondie + Photos by The Travel Palate
I only recommend products I absolutely love and use myself. In full disclosure, by purchasing a product I recommend, I may receive a small compensation. Everything counts to keep my dream afloat; thank you for supporting Healthful Blondie!
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Cassandra says
Wow, this was incredible! I would never have thought to add goat cheese as a crust on chicken. I highly reccomened trying this recipe!
Tati Chermayeff says
Aw, thank you, Cassandra! I am so excited to hear this.
Saskia says
Goat cheese is my absolute favorite. This is just wow.