Chicken Spinach Salad with Apple, Walnuts, and Bacon

I got this recipe from the starter meal plans from Tarryn and boy was it perfect! Matt not only loved it for dinner but also asked if we had enough leftovers for him to have it as a lunch the next day. Coming from a guy that isn't a huge fan of salads for dinner - it seems like a pretty good review.

The Dijon dressing is perfect with the tart apple, the smokiness from the bacon, and the deep toasted flavor in the walnuts. I ended up using a smoky spice blend to season our chicken before cooking it (but still tossed it with some of the dressing ahead of time) and it was a perfect choice. If you'd rather just salt and pepper your chicken, feel free but this is what we'll use again in the future. It would also be a great way to just use whatever leftover chicken you have on hand.

Chicken Spinach Salad with Apple, Walnuts, and Bacon
serves 2

1/2 cup walnuts                                                       Smoky Spice Blend
1 chicken breast (about 10 ounces)                             1 teaspoon chili powder
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar                                    1 teaspoon paprika
1 & 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard                                  1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon salt                                                            1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 teaspoon black pepper                                          1 teaspoon sea salt
1/3 cup olive oil                                                           1/2 teaspoon black pepper
5 ounces bacon, cooked and chopped
1/2 red onion, sliced thinly
1 granny smith apple, cut into matchsticks
4 cups spinach

1. Toast walnuts at 400 for 3 minutes. Stir and toast another 3 minutes. Chop and set aside.
2. Slice chicken lengthwise to make thin fillets. Season chicken with the Smoky Spice Blend and cook over medium high heat until cooked through. Let cool and slice thinly.
3. Blend red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, salt, pepper, and olive oil until well emulsified. Drizzle about 1/3 of dressing over the chicken in a large bowl and let sit 5 minutes.
4. Add walnuts, bacon crumbles, red onion, apple sticks, and spinach to the bowl with chicken. Toss well with extra dressing and serve.

Champagne Vinaigrette

I cannot say enough good things about this salad dressing!! I know that sounds a little overdramatic :)

Fratesi's Italian restaurant in Jackson, MS has the best vinaigrette ever made and of course now that I don't live there, I never have it. This dressing however is going to take it's place in our household. It's so light, flavorful, and versatile that you can really use it a lot. I'm actually making 2 batches at a time and keeping it in a jar in the fridge (I found a cute this jar that I just love).

I served it here with chunks of avocado, crumbled bacon, and avocado. Next time I may add some sunflower seeds too.

I can think of tons of combinations I want to try!

Champagne Vinaigrette

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

3 tablespoons champagne vinegar

Salt and Pepper

½ cup olive oil

1. Stir together mustard, garlic, vinegar, and salt and pepper.

2. While whisking, slowly add the olive oil until well emulsified. Toss over salad.

Spinach, Romaine, and Tangerine Salad

This is one of Matt's favorites. He will take a salad with citrus vinaigrette and fresh orange slices any day of the week. I'm not sure that both the romaine and spinach are necessary (if you don't have both on hand just use the one that you do) but it does add some nice variety.

Spinach, Romaine, and Tangerine Salad **
serves 2

1 Tablespoons mint leaves, torn
1/2 teaspoon tangerine zest
1 Tablespoon fresh tangerine juice
1/4 teaspoon red wine vinegar
dash of salt
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups Romaine, chopped
1 1/2 cups fresh spinach leaves
1 peeled and sliced tangerine
2 Tablespoons walnuts, toasted
dash of pepper





1. Whisk mint leaves, zest, juice, vinegar, and salt together. Gradually add the olive oil while whisking continuously.

2. Toss Romaine, spinach, tangerine slices, and walnuts together. Sprinkle with pepper and drizzle with the dressing. Toss well.

Nutrition (per 1/2 salad):
       136 Calories, 13g Fat, 7 Carbs, 2g Protein, 2g Fiber
       4 weight watchers points+

** recipe from http://pointlessmeals.blogspot.com/2012/02/spinach-romaine-and-tangerine-salad.html

Crunchy Asian Salad

This salad is simply delicious! It's very light and refreshing. We had it with an Asian marinated pork tenderloin but it'd also be a great side dish with something spicy and southwestern. Serve a full cup of salad for a hearty side dish or a half of a cup for just a simple side note next to another side dish. Either way, enjoy!

Crunchy Asian Salad **
serves 8

1/3 cup canola oil

1/3 cup rice vinegar

3 Tablespoons Splenda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

1 package Ramen noodle soup mix, seasoning packet discarded

16 oz coleslaw mix, shredded

1/4  cup sliced almonds

1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced

11 oz mandarin oranges in light corn syrup, drained

3 cups fresh spinach leaves, chopped

1. Whisk canola oil, rice vinegar, Splenda, salt and pepper together and set aside.

2. Break up Ramen noodles and combine with remaining ingredients. Toss to coat.

Nutrition (per 1 cup):

    162 Calories, 13g Fat, 9 Carbs, 1g Fiber, 2g Protein

    4 Weight Watchers Points+

** http://pointlessmeals.blogspot.com/2010/08/crunchy-asian-salad.html

Zucchini Ribbon Salad - Italian

Welcome to our new favorite salad. This is really versatile because you can change the flavor depending on what seasonings you want to use. This is the Italian version but Matt and I are already thinking about making it into a southwestern salad and maybe even trying out an Asian version. mmm - I want some more already.

Zucchini Ribbon Salad - Italian
serves 2

1 medium zucchini
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Italian seasonings (or whatever flavor you want)
1 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted
1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese, grated

1. Trim the ends off the zucchini and shave into thin ribbons with a vegetable peeler or mandoline.
2. Whisk together balsamic vinegar, olive oil, dijon mustard, and seasonings. Toss together with zucchini and pine nuts.
3. Serve with Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.

3 points plus per serving

*** recipe from pointlessmeals.blogspot

Southwestern Ranch Dressing

Today I went running and when I got back I wanted something lighter - like a salad - but hearty too. So I wanted a salad with RANCH. I have no idea why ranch seems heartier to me but that's what I wanted so I wanted to find a way to make it happen without eating a million points. Since I also really like southwestern dressings, I found a good compromise. Rather than adding milk to my Ranch dressing powder, I added reduced fat sour cream and some homemade salsa. It added the liquidity that I needed from the salsa and the creaminess from the sour cream.

If you don't want to make any salsa then you can use any jarred variety. I would suggest pureeing it first though so that your salad dressing is smooth, not chunky.

Southwestern Ranch Dressing
2 tablespoons reduced fat sour cream
1/2 teaspoon Ranch dressing powder
1/4 cup salsa - depending on how spicy you want it

Mix together all the ingredients and let sit about 5 minutes. Serve over any salad or fresh veggies for a low fat snack.

Nutrition:
               55 calories, 3g fat, 1g fiber, 5g carbs, 3g protein
               2 weight watchers pp

Napa Cabbage Salad with Cashews

I love this salad. I could eat the whole bowl by myself for a meal. I serve it all the time with seafood because of the salty freshness in the dressing. My mom and I used to pick at any salad that was leftover after dinner right out of the bowl and this was always my favorite (although there wasn't usually leftovers!).

Cashew and Napa Cabbage Salad

Serves 4: about 154 calories per cup of prepared salad

1/2 cup cashews, slightly chopped

4 cups Napa cabbage cut into small pieces

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Salt and Pepper

1. Toss cashews and cabbage in a large bowl. 

2. Drizzle olive oil over the salad first (this will keep the vinegar from wilting the cabbage). Drizzle with the vinegar and toss again. Season with salt and pepper. 

Southwestern Chicken Caesar Salad

I realize that this is my third post so I'll be quick. I just wanted to suggest that if anyone likes chicken caesar salads but wants a twist on it. PLEASE try add chipotle puree (canned chipotles that if you puree you can keep in your fridge in an airtight container for a LONG time), lime juice, and a little chili powder to your normal caesar dressing. It was delicious. I wanted chicken caesar salad. Matt wanted Bobby Flay (of course) so the compromise was southwestern chicken caesar salad and it was GOOD. Easy way to spice things up!