Ingredients

Serves 4

8 free-range or organic chicken thigh fillets
8 tbsp fresh basil pesto
8 thin slices prosciutto or long pancetta
250ml white wine or chicken stock
8 small/medium Royal Blue or Dutch Cream potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm chunks
½ cup unpitted olives
2-4 garlic cloves, unpeeled, smashed
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
Continental parsley, chopped, to serve
Green salad, to serve

Method

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Spread the inside of each thigh fillet with pesto and roll up. Wrap a slice of prosciutto or pancetta firmly around each fillet.  Refrigerate until they are firm (or secure with a toothpick). Heat a pan that can go on the stove top and then the oven until quite hot. Splash in a little olive oil and then add rolled up chicken. Cook until golden on each side, but not cooked through. With the chicken still in the pan, deglaze the pan with wine or stock. Place in the oven and cook for 20-30 minutes until golden and cooked through and the wine has evaporated.

In a baking dish, heat olive oil in the oven. Add the potatoes, olives and garlic cloves. Season with salt and pepper and bake for 20-30 minutes until potatoes are golden and tender. Remove from oven, place around chicken, scatter with parsley and serve immediately with a green salad.

Notes:  This is a dish that my Italian friend Franco makes. It’s so easy and the flavours are amazing. You could substitute the basil pesto for other flavours – coriander or spicy capsicum pesto would work. You could also spread with mustard instead if you prefer. Use your favourite olives with the potatoes – I like a large fleshy one, but small wild ones would be just as good.  Leave them out if you don’t like them.