Taco Salad

Posted on April 15, 2009 by kitchenbelle

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Spicy salsa! Chunks of avocado! Shreds of iceberg lettuce!  Freshly grated cheese!

Last week my sister-in-law mentioned that she made a fabulous taco salad for dinner.  She described it with such enthusiasm and detail that I have not been able to get it out of my mind! 

Done right, a taco salad is a healthy week night dinner, so I decided to give it a go.  Some notes on keeping it healthy:

  • Skip the chips
  • Replace full fat sour cream with Greek yogurt (for a great source of protein) or use non-fat or low-fat sour cream
  • Replace full fat cheese with non-fat or low-fat cheese and use just a sprinkle
  • Use extra lean ground turkey or chicken in place of beef
  • Use nutrient dense lettuce, such as romaine, instead of watery iceberg (something I didn’t do this time!)

It’s funny—we never eat ice burg lettuce.  It contains mostly water and very little nutrients when compared to its darker leafy friends like romaine, arugula, spinach, Bibb, and Boston.  So having iceberg felt like a treat!  And shredded—I never shred lettuce so it made the salad especially special.  This was a really enjoyable and filling weeknight supper!

Taco Salad:  

  • 1/2 cup salsa
  • 1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream or Greek yogurt
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 pound lean ground turkey (or chicken)
  • 2 large plum tomatoes, diced
  • 1 14-ounce can kidney beans, rinsed
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 8 cups shredded iceberg (or romaine) lettuce (rinse, spin then shred using a grater)
  • 2 avocados, sliced then cut into cubes
  • 1/2 cup shredded low-fat sharp Cheddar cheese

Combine salsa and sour cream in a large bowl.  Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add turkey and cook, stirring often and crumbling with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, beans, cumin and chili powder; cook, stirring, until the tomatoes begin to break down, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in cilantro and 1/4 cup of the salsa mixture.

Add lettuce to the remaining salsa mixture in the bowl and toss to coat. To serve, divide the lettuce among plates, top with the turkey mixture and avocado then sprinkle with cheese.

Recipe adapted from Eating Well.com.

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Filed under: beans, cheese, ground meat, Main Dish, salad, tacos, tomato, turkey | 2 Comments »

Buffalo Chicken Salad

Posted on October 20, 2008 by kitchenbelle

There’s something about Buffalo Chicken that makes it feel like junk food.  Maybe it’s because of the frequency of buffalo tenders on bar menus.  But the truth is, it doesn’t have to be bad for you.  You can enjoy the delicious flavor without lots of fat and calories!

I know many of my readers love Buffalo chicken, as do my husband and I.  When my husband handed me his Men’s Fitness magazine and showed me this recipe, I decided to make it immediatley.  What a great, easy, tasty, and healthful weeknight supper!  (And who would have guessed I’d be getting recipes from men mags!  Though, it was Ellie Krieger who submitted this to the magazine!)

(This recipe made me think of Tina from Carrots ‘n’ Cake because I know how much she loves Buffalo chicken!  Low and behold–she and her husband had Buffalo Chicken Lasagna last night!  Maybe the onslaught of cold weather created a widespread yearning for all things hot & spicy!)

Buffalo Chicken Salad:

  • 2 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
  • 1 small bunch scallions, finely chopped
  • 4 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
  • 3 carrots, grated
  • 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half
  • 4 tablespoons (or more!) Franks Red Hot Buffalo sauce
  • 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts sliced (or even easier–“stir fry chicken strips”)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 small handfuls mozzarella cheese, grated
  • blue cheese crumbles*
  • low fat blue cheese dressing*

In a large bowl combine oil and buffalo sauce.  (Use as much or as little sauce as you’d like!)  Add the chicken tenders (either breasts sliced up or use the “stir fry chicken strips” as I did) and using your hands to mix, fully coat chicken with sauce.

Spray a hot grill pan with cooking spray.  Cook the chicken on the pan until done.

While chicken is cooking, portion your lettuce and veggies into two large salad bowls.  Top with cooked chicken, a sprinkle of crumbled cheese, a handful of grated cheese, and dressing.  Garnish with additional chopped scallions.

*Note: I know I am the minority here, but I don’t eat blue cheese.  For our salads, I replaced blue cheese crumbles with goat cheese crumbles, and blue cheese dressing with ranch dressing.

Also note, this recipe is gluten free.  Be aware, however, that some brands of blue cheese contain gluten.  Read the package label carefully when making your purchase.

Adapted from recipes found in Men’s Fitness Magazine November 2008 issue.

Filed under: chicken, gluten free, Main Dish, salad | 3 Comments »

Caprese Salad (Tomato, Mozzarella, and Basil)

Posted on August 20, 2008 by kitchenbelle

The flavor combination of tomato, fresh mozzarella, and basil ranks very high on my list of favorite flavor combinations.  (Add some prosciutto and a loaf of crusty bread and we’re really talking!)  The freshness, the burst of flavors, the textures, the smell, and the vibrancy of the colors all woo me.  Even the simplicity of the combination is appealing–just grab the fresh ingredients and go.  No prep work required.  No kitchen tools or gadgets.  Maybe it evokes nostalgia of simpler times.  Or maybe I like a good reason to buy bouquets of basil at the farmer’s market.  Or to talk to the tomato vendor about his tomatoes.  Whatever the reason, I find this salad to be pleasing both to my eye and my palette.

Caprese Salad:

  • 2 large field tomatoes, sliced thick
  • 16 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced thick
  • 10-15 fresh basil leaves, rinsed
  • 1/4 – 1/2 cup good olive oil
  • salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste

Start by layering tomatoes across a platter.  Top with cheese, then basil.  Add salt and freshly cracked black pepper.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Repeat the layering until you have used all of your tomato slices.  Serve with a fresh crusty loaf of Italian bread.

Recipes available here on foodnetwork.com.

Filed under: basil, mozzarella, salad, tomato | 3 Comments »

Spinach Artichoke Pasta Salad

Posted on July 7, 2008 by kitchenbelle

 

Tortellini is one of my favorite types of pasta so when I found this recipe, I was very excited to try it.  Also, I don’t really like pasta salads that are “mayonaisey” so this combination of ingredients was particularly alluring.  It tasted so fresh!  So many wonderful textures and flavors.  The tartness of the artichoke hearts was balanced so nicely by the saltiness of the prosciutto filled tortellini.  The sweet onions provided a satisfying crunch.   Every bite was colorful and enjoyable.  I plan to make this one again and again. 

Spinach Artichoke Pasta Salad:

  • 1 package fresh Buitoni chicken prosciutto tortellini
  • 1/2 pound baby spinach (chopped)
  • 1 15-oz can artichoke hearts in water (drained and chopped)
  • 1/2 small red onion
  • 2 clove garlic
  • 1 lemon
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • A few splashes of red wine vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
  • handful sun-dried tomatoes (chopped coarsely)

recipe notes: the recipe called for 1 chopped roasted red pepper, which I omitted.  I also omitted lemon zest and instead used only fresh lemon juice.  And I tripled this recipe to get the quantity shown in the photo.

Boil the pasta in salted water.  Cook tortellini for 3-4 minutes.  (I was so worried about over cooking these little pouches of deliciousness, that I actually undercooked them.  More on that later.)  Drain then cool pasta by spreading across a cookie sheet in a single layer.

Coarsely chop baby spinach.  Combine with artichoke and red onion.  Chop garlic then add salt to it and mash with the back of a spoon to create a paste.  In a small bowl combine the garlic and salt paste with the lemon juice.  Add the vinegar.  Whisk in oil, thyme and fresh cracked black pepper.  Add pasta and sun-dried tomatoes to the salad.  Dress the salad and gently toss.

So, I did under cook the pasta, just a bit.  Before storing it, I added some olive oil and chicken broth so the next day, the leftover pasta had obsorbed more of the dressing and was just fine. 

I highly recommend this dish as a fresh alternative to boring colorless, traditional, creamy salads.

Recipe adapted from recipe by Rachael Ray found here on foodnetwork.com

Filed under: artichoke, salad, Side, spinach, tomato, tortellini | Leave a comment »

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