Sometimes I’m in a hurry and want something quick. When I don’t have time to make my crispy air fryer chicken recipe, I swing by the grocery store and get a couple crispy chicken tenders or breasts (found near or in the deli department) and add these to this salad. When I buy them ahead of time and they sit in my refrigerator a few days in advance, it’s nice to know I can fall back on this recipe and pull it out of my hat when I need it most.

Blueberries and pine nuts add a perfect touch. They give us a nice departure from all the typical salads that sometimes even the best of us can get bored with. I like to load this salad with these two power foods.

I’ve even enjoyed this salad without the chicken as a vegetarian dish. It’s just that good, trust me!

Crispy Chicken Salad with Blueberries and Pine Nuts Ingredients

• Greens: Since I eat a lot of salad, I like to mix the greens up quiet a bit. I love the mixed greens in this one but I have also made it with straight up baby spinach.
• Chicken: Store bought chicken tender or chicken breasts are convenient. But you can use a healthier choice like my Tender Juicy Air Fryer Chicken Bites.
• Blueberries: I use fresh blueberries in this salad. Sometimes I add so many I’m not sure if I’m making a blueberry salad with chicken instead.
• Pine Nuts: Pine nuts can be bought in a container or a bag and are usually found in your specialty aisel at the grocery store.
• Blu Cheese Dressing: There are several options for blu cheese dressing. Chunky, creamy or somewhere in between.

What are Pine Nuts?

Let’s explore the wonderful option of pine nuts and all they have to offer.

What exactly is a pine nut, you ask? Pine nuts are the small, edible seeds of pines trees and are found in the pine cones. So technically the are pine seeds rather than nuts.

What do pine nuts taste like? Pine nuts are small, soft nuts with a nutty flavor. What makes them so yummy is they also taste a little like cashews as well, with a slight undertone of sweetness. This perfect nut go accompany a fruit salad quite well!

Are pine nuts healthy? Yes! The are full of vitamin E which can help your skin look young and healthy. They also contain protein, magnesium and iron which can help increase your energy level.

How to Make Crispy Chicken Salad with Blueberries and Pine Nuts

1. Wash lettuce and set in bowls.
2. Cut up crispy chicken and add to bowl.
3. Sprinkle a healthy amount of blueberries to taste.
4. Top with pine nuts.
5. Drizzle with blue cheese dressing.

Tasty Variations for Crispy Chicken Salad

Chicken: Rotisserie chicken, grilled chicken, pan seared chicken, air fryer chicken. Chicken tenders, breasts or meat from legs or wings. This doesn’t have to be in big neat slices which makes the method of cooking and the white or dark meat choice so versatile.
Other Meats: I’ve made this salad with cut up beef like a tenderloin or flank steak. Also ham would work but I would probably add some pieces of pineapple to tie it in better with that meat.
Meatless: Of course! Turn this into a vegetarian delight!
Fruit: grapes, pears, mangos, figs, strawberries, peaches, pineapple, or blackberries.
Dressings: Blueberry /strawberry/raspberry vinaigrette, ranch, poppy seed, catalina.
Greens: Iceberg, arugula, boston, romaine, red leaf, butter, spinach.

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Crispy Chicken Salad with Blueberries and Pine Nuts

Juicy, Crispy pieces of chicken on top of a bed of mixed greens, sprinkled with blueberries and pine nuts and topped with a refreshing blue cheese dressing. A fast, easy salad that contains only 5 ingredients and is packed with full of vitamins.

Course Main Course, Salad

Cuisine American

Keyword Crispy Chicken Salad with Blueberries and Pine Nuts

Prep Time 10 minutes

Total Time 10 minutes

Servings 2 servings

Calories 196kcal

Author Sharon Knott

Ingredients

• 2 chicken tenders (breaded)
• 1 cup blueberries (fresh)
• 1 ½ cups mixed lettuce greens
• 2 tablespoons pine nuts
• 3 tablespoons blue cheese dressing

Instructions

• Wash lettuce and set in bowls.
• Cut up your choice of chicken and add on top of the lettuce in each bowl.
• Sprinkle a healthy amount of blueberries over top of salad.
• Top with pine nuts.
• Drizzle with blue cheese dressing.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 196kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 32mg | Sodium: 276mg | Potassium: 379mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 330IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 38mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Crispy Chicken Salad with Blueberries and Pine Nuts first appeared on Plated for Two.

The post Crispy Chicken Salad with Blueberries and Pine Nuts appeared first on Plated for Two.

We all like to eat heathy and this dish is just that. I could eat chicken every day, and I love my chicken with some hot sides, but during the summer I like to ditch the heavy dinners for something light and refreshing.

If you struggle with eating healthy, and you have eaten more lettuce than there are rabbits in your town, try this option made with zucchini noodles instead. Zucchini noodles are a wonderful departure from lettuce and way healthier than pasta noodles.

These little gems come premade for you in the refrigerator section near the produce or if you have a spiral machine, you can make them yourself. But beware-it’s addicting. One zucchini makes a lot of spiraled zucchini so that’s also a bonus. I love both the green and the yellow but watch out you don’t accidently pick up a cucumber like I did one time when I was trying to impress my mom with my new spiral gadget.

I love grilled anything, but you can opt to cook your chicken in a pan. If I’m using a breast, I’ll butterfly it for the grill. I usually opt for dark chicken meat but this dish has plenty of moisture from the zucchini noodles so white meat won’t feel dry.  I’ve used rotisserie chicken to make it super easy and just heated it up in the microwave or frying pan with a touch of water.

Ingredients for Recipe

Chicken: Chicken grilled, baked, pan fried, rotisserie, or even leftover.
Zucchini: Green or yellow.
Tomatoes: Cherry or grape, red or orange or yellow, roma or heirloom.
Blue Zucchini Cheese: Crumbles for more flavor per bite.
Fresh Medley of Spices: Cracked pepper or a medley of flavors.

How to Make Recipe

1. Season and cook chicken.
2. Meanwhile spiral your zucchini.
3. Cut your tomatoes and add to zucchini.
4. Add mixture to a pan to heat.
5. Add chicken to zucchini and tomatoes.
6. Crumble blue cheese on top.
7. Sprinkle seasoning.

Variations

Meat: Chicken, grilled, pan fried, oven roasted, rotisserie. You can also use any other type of meat, especially leftover.
Zucchini: Green or yellow.
Tomatoes: Use any variety of tomatoes. I like to separate some of the seeds and remove them as well as the watery fleshy part of the tomato. You could also use sliced yellow, red or green bell peppers.
Cheese: Blue, feta, sharp or mild cheddar or colby jack in cube form.
Seasoning: Get your flavor from the seasoning on your chicken, if you are looking to season the zucchini spirals you could use a Medley, black pepper or red pepper flakes.

Questions and Tips for Recipe

Do I have to cook the zucchini noodles? No, you can eat them raw, without cooking. They are just as refreshing. however for this recipe warm noodles and tomatoes adds a lovely touch.

Can I make spiral noodles from cucumbers? A cucumber has a higher content of water so it will not work to spiral a cucumber and heat it.

Do I need to seed the tomatoes? No, you can just slice the tomatoes and use them the way they are. Due to the moisture content in the noodles, I like to remove some of it from the tomatoes.

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Easy Grilled Chicken Breasts on a Bed of Zucchini Noodles

Grilled Chicken with zucchini noodles, grape tomatoes and blue cheese crumbles is the perfect light and easy dinner. Serve this dish hot or cold, either way, “zoodles” can be cooked or eaten raw. What are “zoodles?” Zoodles are spiralized noodles, in this case, made from zucchini.

Course Main Course, Salad

Cuisine American

Keyword Easy Grilled Chicken Breasts on a Bed of Zucchini Noodles

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 2 servings

Calories 196kcal

Ingredients

• 1 Chicken breast sliced (baked, pan fried, rotisserie, or even leftover)
• 1 large Zucchini (yellow or green)
• 8-10 Tomatoes, cherry or grape (red or orange or yellow, roma or heirloom)
• ¼-½ cup Blue Cheese: (crumbles for more flavor per bite)
• ¼ teaspoon Fresh Medley of Spices: Cracked pepper or a medley of flavors. (per salad to taste)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions

• Season and cook chicken. You can use a chicken breast of even dark meat. Slice or cut up chicken, set aside.
• Meanwhile spiral your zucchini. When you spiralize a zucchini you will end up with a greater volumn than the actual vegetable. These are much lighter than pasta noodles so enjoy a larger quantity.
• Cut your tomatoes and add to zucchini. Toss well.
• Add tomatoes and zucchini to pan with a few tablespoons of olive oil. Toss around for a couple minutes to warm.
• Plate your zucchini noodles and tomatoes and add chicken.
• Crumble blue cheese on top of each salad. Use as little or much as you like!
• Sprinkle seasoning over dish and enjoy.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 196kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 309mg | Potassium: 594mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 901IU | Vitamin C: 38mg | Calcium: 70mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Easy Grilled Chicken on a Bed of Zucchini Noodles first appeared on Plated for Two.

The post Easy Grilled Chicken on a Bed of Zucchini Noodles appeared first on Plated for Two.