Strawberry Chicken Salad

Strawberry Salad on a Summer Saturday was calling my name!

I've had a few such strawberry salads, and this one has stuck around as a preferred choice.  Pretty basic, it's similar to most other strawberry chicken salads out there.  With red luscious strawberries, crumbly salty feta cheese, bite with green onions, finished off with pecans on a nice bed of lettuce greens.

By the way, this makes an awesome wrap too, great for school or work lunches.  But if you're trying to cut out the carbs the salad can hold up its own in the tasty department.  Salads are meant to be easy, healthy, light and refreshing and this certainly lives up to those expectations!

Ingredients:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup balsamic vinaigrette (bottled)
12oz package of mixed salad greens
4 green onions sliced (white & light green)
1/4 cup pecans, chopped
4oz of crumbled feta (substitute goat cheese if you want a stronger flavor)


Directions:

1. Marinate the chicken breasts by placing in a large plastic storage bag. Seal the bag, leaving a small opening, then pound the breasts until they're uniform in thickness. Pour in half the balsamic vinaigrette, then seal the bag and marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour. 

2. After the chicken has marinated, grill it until it's done, which will be about 5 minutes per side. Remove from the heat to cool slightly.  When you can handle it, dice up the chicken.

3. Add the salad greens to a large bowl. Add half of the remaining dressing and toss it to coat the greens.  You can always add more later if the salad needs doctoring.

4. Add the strawberries, chicken, green onions, and pecans. Toss it gently a few times until it's all combined. Top with crumbled cheese and toss.

Other great salads to whet your summer appetite:
Avocado Corn Salad
Watermelon Arugula Salad 
Broccoli Salad 
Pioneer Pasta Salad
Buffalo Chicken Salad

Check out our Market Inspirations for Summer