Grilled Chicken Eggplant and Zucchini Pesto Pizza
One of the most exciting aspects of spring is baseball and I love to watch any spring training game I am able to. I just love the sport and watching the game reassures me that the warm weather is coming! It has really been an odd couple months weather-wise with it warm and sunny one day and freezing the next. But, baseball is coming and so is summer.
Since baseball is a true sign of spring, it is also a great time to fire up the grill. Baseball and BBQ go hand in hand and anytime I am watching the game I love to eat anything off the grill!!
The other day, it was warm and sunny, so I just had to start up the grill. I had some chicken breast in the fridge, along with some vegetables. They all ended up grilled and I used them to assemble one of the most amazing pizzas I have ever had.
To get things started, I grilled the eggplant, zucchini and red peppers. Grilling vegetables is so simple and they have a wonderful flavour. It is important to watch them, as they do not require that long on the grill. After a few minutes on the grill, I flip them to cook on the other side (just look at those grill marks on them in the photo above!). Once flipped, brush them with some olive oil or marinade.
I grilled the chicken breasts as well. First, they were marinated in the fridge for a few hours in a mixture that I made (find it in the recipe below!). The flavour in these chicken breasts were amazing and they can be chopped up and used in so many things like wraps, sandwiches, salads, pasta or this pizza.
Instead of a traditional pizza sauce, these toppings demanded a pesto sauce as the base and they all worked perfectly together to make one outstanding pizza!
Grilled Chicken Eggplant and Zucchini Pesto Pizza
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 zucchini
- 1 large eggplant
- 1 red pepper
- 4 naan breads or personal pizza shells
- 1/4 cup pesto sauce
- 1 1/2 cup grated mozzarella
Instructions
- Mix together the oil, spices and garlic in a small bowl.
- Place the two chicken breasts in a dish with sides. Pour half the mixed marinade over the chicken. Flip so all sides are coated in the marinade. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for a couple hours.
- Slice the zucchini lengthwise to make 1/4 inch strips. Cut the eggplant to make 1/4 inch rounds. Core and halve the red pepper.
- Fire up the grill and bring it to a medium high heat.
- Place the chicken breasts on the grill and cook till they reach an internal temperature of 165F/73.8C.
- Place the veggies on the grill and flip after the cook for a few minutes. While they are on the grill, brush the veggies with remaining marinade.
- Bring the chicken and veggies to room temperature. Chop into smallish sized chunks.
- Preheat oven to 425F/218C.
- Spread pesto sauce on the naan bread. Top with the chicken, eggplant, zucchini and red peppers. Sprinkle with grated mozzarella.
- Bake in the oven for 7-10 minutes or until the cheese in just starting to bubble and the edge of the naan bread is browned.
- Slice and serve.
Post sponsored by TUMS. All opinions are my own
