Chinese Chicken Salad

I love having a big entree salad for dinner, it just feels so clean and healthy.  I try to have a salad dinner several times a month and this salad was a wonderful addition to my line-up.  It has so many textures with the lettuce, cabbage, won ton skins, sugar snap peas, almonds, and chicken.  The dressing was light and the oranges added an extra burst of flavor in every bite.  This will be on permanent rotation in my house from now on.  I hope you try it too!

Ingredients (makes 4 entree salads)

For the salad:

1 large head romaine, chopped into bite sized pieces

1/2 head of cabbage, thinly sliced

1/2 pound sugar snap peas, sliced into 1 inch pieces

1/2 C cilantro, finely chopped

4 -5 C cooked chicken or Gardien Chick'n Scallopini, cut or torn into pieces

1/2 C scallions, thinly sliced

1/2 C sliced almonds

crispy fried won ton skins

toasted sesame seeds

8 mandarin oranges, peeled and separated

For the dressing

1/4 C soy sauce

1/4 C lemon juice

2 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp white vinegar

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1 Tbsp sesame oil

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

3 Tbsp peanut oil

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, combine all the ingredients for the dressing.  Whisk thoroughly and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the chicken and scallions.  Pour 1/3 C dressing in with the chicken and scallions.  Toss to combine.
3. In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, cabbage, sugar snap peas, and cilantro.  Add dressing (whisking continuously to prevent separation).  Toss to evenly coat.  Add the chicken mixture and toss.  
4. Serve on individual plates and top with almonds, sesame seeds, won ton skins, and orange slices.    Enjoy!

Massaged Kale Salad

I am obsessed with this salad.  As far as I am concerned, it is the perfect lunch!  You can prepare all the elements in advance and throw it together in an instant.  Since my lunches are spent preparing food for my daughters, I need something fast for myself.  Once "massaged" with the olive oil and red wine vinegar, the kale won't wilt and can be stored for days just waiting to be thrown into a bowl.  An added benefit is the use of nutritional yeast flakes.  I'll admit, I was hesitant when I first tried them, but I promise you they are amazing!  They are a great source of protein and B-complex vitamins.  They have a delicious cheesy-nutty flavor that works perfectly on this salad.  This salad is a real keeper and I will be enjoying it over and over!  I hope you will too!   :)

Ingredients

1 bunch kale, stems removed and torn into bite sized pieces

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

3-4 Tbsp pine nuts

nutritional yeast flakes, to taste

lemon juice, to taste

Directions

1. Toast the pine nuts in a small pan over medium heat until fragrant.  Set aside to cool.  Crush with a potato masher or meat tenderizer until crumbled.
2. Place the kale leaves in a large bowl.  Add the olive oil and red wine vinegar.  Rub the kale leaves in your hands for about 2 minutes until evenly coated and softened.  The kale can be saved for a few days in the fridge at this point.
3. When ready to serve, place kale into a bowl and top with pine nuts and nutritional yeast flakes to your taste.  I probably use about 1 1/2 Tbsp of both for a single serving.  Add a dash of fresh lemon juice and toss to combine.  Enjoy!

Inspired by Eat Drink Better

Weekly Menu

Happy Monday!  We had a lovely weekend with beautiful weather.  I hope your weekend was fun as well!  Our trip to the farm was great and we picked up some delicious produce for the week.  We selected some carrots, romaine, mandarin oranges, cauliflower, sugar snap peas, cabbage, and strawberries.  We will also be utilizing green onion, cilantro, and kale from our own garden.  With this selection, we will be enjoying the following meals this week:

• Our Orange Dinner of Grilled Cheese, Tomato Soup, and Roasted Carrots
• using the carrots

• Chinese Chicken Salad
• using the romaine, cabbage, sugar snap peas, mandarin oranges, green onion, and cilantro

• 7-Layer Burrito with Mexican Roasted Cauliflower
• using the romaine and the cauliflower

• I will have Massaged Kale Salad for lunch and the strawberries for dessert.