Chicken Strawberry Spinach Salad

Ingredients

Chicken:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1lb skinless, boneless chicken breast halves ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Cooking spray

Salad Dressing:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• ⅛ teaspoon sugar
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Salad:

• 2 cups halved strawberries
• 4 cups baby spinach
• ½ small red onion, very thinly sliced 1/3 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Directions

1. Combine 2 tablespoons oil and 2 tablespoons vinegar in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add chicken to bag; seal. Let stand 10 minutes, turning occasionally.
2. Heat a grill pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Remove chicken from marinade; discard marinade.
3. Sprinkle chicken with ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Coat pan with cooking spray.
4. Add chicken to pan; cook 7 minutes on each side or until done (165°). Cut into slices.
5. Combine remaining 1 tablespoon oil, 1 tablespoon vinegar, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper and ⅛ teaspoon sugar in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk or fork.
6. Add strawberries; toss to coat. Add spinach and onion to strawberry mixture; toss gently to combine.
7. Sprinkle feta over salad. Divide salad among 4 plates; top evenly with sliced chicken.

Variations & Tips

• Use other vinegars if you don’t have balsamic vinegar such as apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar.
• Replace the sugar with honey or maple syrup.
• Preparing the chicken on the grill is a great option if you have a grill. Other options include pan searing or roasting in the oven.
• You can use other salad greens instead of spinach.
• If strawberries are not available, use apples, pears, grapes, blackberries, raspberries, or blueberries.
• Add other toppings such as chickpeas, chopped walnuts, slivered almonds, or sunflower seeds
• Other cheese options instead of feta could include blue cheese, goat cheese, parmesan cheese or sharp cheddar.

Yield: 4 Servings (4-oz chicken per serving and 1 cup salad) Total Cost: $8.38

Cost per Serving: $2.09

Nutritional Info (per serving): 311 calories; 16 g fat (3.9 g saturated fat); 29.3g protein; 11.5 g carbohydrates; 3.1 g fiber; 503 mg sodium

Source: Adapted from Cooking Light

Watch the chicken strawberry spinach salad cooking demo below and download the recipe to make it yourself.