Indian Summer Chopped Salad
Ingredients
Indian Summer Chopped Salad
Dressing
Instructions
Indian Summer Chopped Salad
  1. To prepare chicken: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Drizzle chicken breast with extra virgin olive oil and season with onion and garlic powder, cayenne, cumin, paprika, salt and pepper. Bake for 25 minutes or until thoroughly cooked, yet still juicy and tender. Remove from pan and set aside to cool (if planning to eat salad right away, transfer chicken breast to fridge to cool quickly). Once cooled, use two forks to shred chicken or dice into 1-inch chunks.
  2. To prepare corn: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Using a sharp knife, hold each uncooked corn cob upright on cutting board and slice straight down to remove kernels. Place approx. 2 cups of corn kernels in small bowl and mix with 1 T. extra virgin olive oil and a dash of salt and pepper (don’t over season – you want to really taste the sweet flavor of the roasted corn).
  3. Spread the corn in one even layer on a baking sheet and roast in a 400 degree F oven for approx. 7 mins (oven times vary, so keep a close eye on the corn – it’s ready when some kernels begin to slightly char. Don’t allow to burn!). Using a spatula, remove the corn from the hot pan and transfer to separate bowl to cool.
  4. Place about 2-3 cups of washed and spun salad mix on the cutting board. Using a very sharp knife (or, better yet, a mezzaluna – a curved blade with a plastic handle that you rock back and forth to cut more uniformly; also used to slice pizzas), chop the lettuce pieces into even, bite-sized pieces. Continue this step until all 6 cups of the salad mix have been chopped. Place the chopped salad mix into a medium to large bowl.
  5. Add the remaining ingredients (diced pepper, tomatoes, beans, corn, avocado, chicken and goat cheese) and combine gently with salad tongs (avoid aggressive mixing of ingredients; you want each ingredient to maintain its own unique and delicious flavor).
  6. Fill individual serving bowls with the chopped salad and lightly toss a final time with the dressing. Garnish with a twisted lime slice and serve immediately. Note: I prefer to toss each individual serving bowl with the dressing, as opposed to adding all the dressing directly to the large salad bowl. This helps keep the salad crisp.
Dressing
  1. Combine ingredients and blend with a stick mixer or powerful blender until smooth. Add cold filtered water (a T. at a time until desired consistency is reached.
  2. I prefer mine like a vinaigrette, but some of my family members like it a bit thicker/creamy).
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