Crank your salad up a notch!

Spinach with Flank Steak, Feta, Cranberries, and Walnuts

Thai Chicken Salad with Peanut Dressing

I guess that's what you get when you marry a soon-to-be dietitian.....A LOT of salad! We do eat a lot of salad in our household, BUT they are not just your ordinary salads. I love coming up with different salad creations instead of just the plain ol' lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, and onions. Salads are not only easy to make, but they are also very filling due to all of the fiber (vegetables) and protein (meat, beans, nuts)! Here are the recipes to the salads above....

Spinach salad with flank steak

• Flank or skirt steak (enough for 2)
• 1 bag of baby spinach leaves
• 1/2 cup of reduced-fat feta cheese
• 1/3 cup of toasted walnuts, chopped
• 1/2 cup of dried cranberries
• 1 medium roma tomato, diced
• 1/4 cup of red onion, diced
• Vinagerette of choice (we used a low-fat raspberry vinagerette)

Directions:

1. Season steak with salt and pepper. Grill steak on medium-high heat for 6-7 minutes per side. Let steak rest for about 5-8 minutes once its finished cooking.

2. Toss together baby spinach, feta, walnuts, cranberries, tomato, and onion. Lightly dress the salad with vinagerette.

3. Plate the salad and top with grilled flank steak. Enjoy!!




Thai Chicken Salad with Peanut Dressing

• 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 1 small can of mandarin oranges, drained
• 1/2-3/4 cup wonton strips
• 1/2 cup of dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup of green onions (white and green part), diced
• 1/2 bag of baby spinach leaves
• 1/2 bag of romaine, chopped

Peanut Dressing

• 1/3 cup + 2 Tablespoons of canola oil
• 1/3 cup of rice vinegar
• 2 Tablespoons of Splenda
• 1 Tablespoon of reduced-fat peanut butter or PB2
• 3/4 teaspoon of salt
• 3/4 teaspoon of pepper

Directions:

1. Season chicken breasts with salt, pepper, parika, and garlic powder. Grill on medium-high heat for 5-6 minutes per side, or until the meat is no longer pink in the middle. Once the meat is finished cooking, set aside.

2. Combine spinach, romaine, green onions, wonton strips, dried cranberries, and oranges in a large bowl. Lightly dress the salad with peanut dressing (Note: you will not need all of the dressing in the recipe above).

3. Top salad with grilled chicken breasts. Enjoy!!

Greek Salad Topped With Crispy Polenta And Grilled Chicken

I can't quite remember if it was my sister or I who came up with this recipe, but we started to make this salad when we lived together in Dallas. We loved to make big salads for dinner because they are filling and they don't leave you feeling deprived! Polenta is basically cornmeal and it can be prepared many different ways.  In this recipe, the polenta is drizzled with olive oil and baked until it is crispy on the outside and soft in the inside. I think you will find this salad to be one of your favorites!!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 bag of leafy romaine lettuce
• 1/2 bag of baby spinach leaves
• 18 oz. of San Gennaro Polenta, basil & garlic flavor (this can be found in the pasta section of the grocery store, it is packaged and held at room temperature)
• 2-3 Tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 medium skinless, boneless chicken breasts, thawed and cubed into bite size pieces
• 1 teaspoon of ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1/4 cup of red onion, thinly sliced into half moons
• 1 1/2 roma tomatoes, diced
• 1/3 cup of jared roasted red peppers, diced
• 3 oz. of crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
• 1/4 cup of shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese 
• 1/4 -1/3 cup of Light balsalmic vinaigrette or vinaigrette of your choice  

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice the polenta into small cubes or triangles and place them on a baking sheet. Drizzle 2-3 Tablespoons of olive oil over the top of the polenta and mix together with your hands. Bake for 15-20 minutes, flipping them half way through (make sure they are browned and crispy). 

2. While the polenta is baking, saute the chicken in a skillet on medium to medium-high heat for about 10 minutes. Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. The chicken should be lightly brown on the outside and no longer pink in the middle. Set aside when it is finished cooking.

3. In a large bowl add the lettuce, spinach, red onion, tomatoes, roasted red peppers, feta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Add the dressing to the salad (make sure you don't over dress) and mix well until the ingredients are well incorporated.

4. Portion the salad onto plates and top with cooked chicken and crisy polenta. Enjoy!!

Tips: You can serve this salad as an entre with the chicken or you can serve it as a side salad without the chicken.



Asian Coleslaw Salad

Ingredients:

• Salad
• 1 1/2 (24 oz.) bags of coleslaw mix
• 1 cup of fresh spinach, chopped
• 1 green or red bell pepper, diced
• 3 green onions, chopped (white and green parts)
• 1 small can of mandarin oranges, drained
• 3/4 cup of chowmein noodles
• 1/2 cup of dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup of peanuts, chopped
• Dressing
• 1/3 cup + 2 Tablespoons of canola oil
• 1/3 cup of rice vinegar
• 2 Tablespoons of Splenda
• 1 Tablespoon of reduced-fat peanut butter or PB2
• 3/4 teaspoon of salt
• 3/4 teaspoon of pepper

Directions:

Combine all of the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Then, in a small bowl, combine all of the dressing ingredients and whisk together until they are well incorporated. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss. Enjoy!

*Recipe inspired by http://www.eatbetteramerica.com/*

Israeli Couscous Salad

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of Original Pearl Couscous
• 6 oz. of fat free feta cheese
• 1 cup of cherry tomatoes (sliced in half)
• 1 1/2 cups of roasted asparagus (cut into 1 inch pieces)
• 1/3 cup of spinach (chopped into small pieces)
• 3 Tbsp. of fresh basil (chopped into small pieces)
• 2 tsp. of shallots (diced)
• 1/2 lemon, use juice only
• 3 Tbsp. of olive oil
• Dash of salt
• 2 tsp of pepper
• 1 Tbsp. of Drew's Rosemary Balsamic Dressing or and kind of Balsalmic vinegarette

Directions:

Make couscous according to the directions and place it in a large bowl to cool (about 30 minutes). In the mean time, chop asparagus into small pieces (about 1 inch in length) and place on a baking sheet. Add 2 Tbsp. of olive oil, salt, and pepper and toss to coat all of the pieces. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes or until lightly brown and crispy.

Place the feta, sliced tomatoes, chopped spinach and basil, and shallots into a large serving bowl. Once the couscous and asparagus are finished cooking and cooled, add them into the serving bowl with the rest of the vegetables. Mix all of these ingredients together. To dress the salad, add the juice of half of a lemon, 1 Tbsp. of olive oil, and balsalmic dressing. Toss all of the ingredients together until well incorporated. You can serve this salad hot or cold, either way it is very yummy!! Enjoy!!

**This recipe was inspired by Chef Kent Rathbun who taught the Central Market cooking class we went to called Make the Most of the Grill**