Farmer Olga from Ferme Reveuse was inspired to ask me to develop this recipe by a chicken wellington recipe she read about in Food and Drink magazine. I was happy to oblige and managed to flex my homemade puff pastry skills! I eat gluten free at home so I made gluten free puff pastry for myself but definitely make this with store bought. I suggest getting a puff pastry made with butter as the flavour is much better than one made with shortening.
As always, I recommend getting a whole pasture raised chicken and breaking it down into cuts. This way you get great quality chicken at a lower price per pound. Save the rest of the chicken for future recipes.
Pesto Chicken Wellington
Serves 2-4 with a salad
2 chicken breasts, 170g each or breasts from a 2.2 kg ferme reveuse chicken
salt to season
1 tsp olive oil
340g puff pastry, cut in half and rolled out into 2 8” x 8” square to 1/8” thickness, refrigerated
2 tbsp cream cheese, softened, divided
1 tbsp pesto, divided
1 egg, whisked
1/8 tsp smoked paprika
black pepper to taste
Nectarines
4 nectarines, pitted and quartered
2 green onions, tipped and cut into 1” pieces on a diagonal
2 sprigs thyme
1 tsp honey
Heat a skillet over medium heat and drizzle in olive oil. Season chicken breasts with salt and sear chicken in skillet for 4 min per side or until golden. Set aside on a plate and keep in the refrigerator while you get ready to assemble and bake the wellington. It’s ok if the chicken is slightly underdone at this point, it will cook through in the fridge. However, you cannot sear the chicken breast and leave it overnight in the fridge like this, you’ll have to continue the recipe.
Preheat oven at 400F. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
Lay nectarine halves on the baking tray leaving 2 large areas clear for the wellington. Drizzle honey over nectarines and lay green onion slices and thyme sprigs over nectarines.
Remove chicken from the fridge. Blot dry well with paper towel. Place one breast on the left side of each puff pastry square leaving 1” around the edge. Repeat with the other breast. Brush chicken breasts with cream cheese and drizzle pesto on top evenly between chicken.
Brush border of the puff pastry with egg wash being careful not to let it drip over the edge of the puff pastry. Fold puff pastry over the chicken breast like a book and seal the edges by pressing the border with tines of a fork. You’ve now formed the wellington.
Brush the top of each wellington with more egg wash and sprinkle black pepper and smoked paprika over the top. Using a paring knife, cut 3 small slits through the top of each pastry. Carefully put on the vacant spots on the baking sheet.
Place wellingtons and nectarines in the oven and bake for 15-18 min or until the internal temperature of the chicken breast is 170F. Note: don’t open the oven for the first 12 minutes of the bake. Puff pastry needs an even heat to puff up well.
