The Healthy Touch: Salad of Mixed Greens with Seasonal Vegetables, and Grilled Chicken

Last week I posted a menu that reflects the new health-conscious lifestyle that I have adopted. Today I am going to show you a cool big-ass salad with a grilled chicken breast.

I originally got the idea from a wonderful site called Marks Daily Apple. I saw a video a while back where he described how he eats a “big-assed salad” for lunch. The idea was so awesome, that I adopted it for my daily lunch every day.

What really sells this salad is the freshness of the vegetables and fruit that go into it. Is it weird to add blueberries to a salad like this? I counter with – why not? They add a new note to the chord that makes this salad awesome.

You will go away from the table sated with this salad, and the carbohydrates are minimal.

Salad of Mixed Greens with Seasonal Vegetables, Blueberries, and Grilled Chicken

Serves: 1

Net Carbohydrates: 16.10 grams

Ingredients:

For the chicken:

• 1 chicken breast, 6 ounces (skinless and boneless if you like)
• 1 tablespoon WDC Montreal Steak spice (shameless self-promotion, I know. You could whatever spice you like to use the best)

For the salad:

• 2 cups mixed baby salad greens
• 1/4 cucumber, sliced thinly on diagonal
• 1/4 red pepper, seeded, sliced into strips
• 3 asparagus spears, trimmed to 4 inches
• 10 snow peas, ends and ribs trimmed
• 1/4 cup blueberries
• 2 ounces extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 ounce balsamic vinegar

Method:

For the chicken:

1. Rub the steak spice into the chicken breast, and grill over a medium flame.
2. Turn the chicken to mark attractively with hatch marks. You will want to cook it until it is completely done. (There will be no pink inside the meat.) (If you like, you could just cook the chicken in the oven, just pan sear it first with a touch of oil. Both will work!)
3. Allow your chicken to rest for a minute once it comes off the grill. The juices will re-distribute and the meat will relax. Your chicken will be moist and tender this way. If you cut it right away, all of your juices will run out of the breast, and you will be left with a dry husk. Not very fun to eat!
4. Slice the chicken into strips easily eaten with a fork. Keep the breast together so you can present it nicely on the plate.

Assemble the salad:

1. Place the salad greens into the center of your bowl. It is okay to have a slight mound. The key here is presentation, and you will need something to rest your chicken on.
2. Arrange the cucumber slices in one “corner” of your bowl. Fan them out attractively before placing them. You want to create some interest in this salad with your skills.
3. Continue placing the peppers, snow peas, and asparagus at the “corners”, opposing each other.
4. Sprinkle the blueberries in the middle. (Get over the blueberries in the salad. Trust me, it will be delicious!)
5. Gently place your chicken breast on top of the salad. I like to fan it out so you can place it around your dressing ramekin for presentation sakes.
6. Fill the ramekin with the olive oil, then add the balsamic vinegar.
7. Eat the salad. Bonne Appetit!

You can substitute whatever vegetables you have on hand for this salad. I sometimes I like to add cherry tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms, radishes or whatever berries that I have on hand. If I am in the mood for salty, I may add olives instead.

Your imagination is the limit. Play around with your food and combinations, and throw away all those unnecessary (bread) carbohydrates you eat. Whole other possibilities await for you if you are willing to experiment.

What would you like to throw into this salad?

Tagged as: berries, greens, Healthy Touch, lunch, salad, sante, vegetables