Mediterranean Chicken Salad
About a year ago my sister went to Mayo for some health reasons. When she came back her doctors and her agreed that a Mediterranean Diet would be best for her. Mediterranean foods are considered part of an Anti-inflammatory diet and wow are these foods delicious!! I could seriously eat meals consisting of chicken, fish, tomato, chickpeas, asparagus, artichokes & cucumbers four to five nights a week. I always feel good after eating this style of food and always feel full. Obviously that is largely what I am going for here;)
This is the BEST week night, quick, family approved dinner! When I plan dinner I want it to be something that my kids will hopefully like - I say hopefully because they are so hit or miss. When I make a meal I think is sure to please, they sit and stare at it. Other times I make a dinner that I think they won't like and they ask for seconds. I guess I need to lower my expectations or stop guessing! Regardless of my kids inconsistency on food preference, this meal is sure to please!
The best part about this salad is you make a double batch of the marinade because it doubles as the dressing! Win - Win! The marinade/dressing takes less than 5 minutes to make and I would recommend marinating the chicken for at least 6 hours if not overnight. I always think the longer the marinade has to soak into the meat, the better!
Once you have the chicken on the grill (or sauté in garlic olive oil!) you can cut up basically any veggies you like. We keep it a mediterranean themed dinner so I always do cucumbers, artichokes, tomato, onion, avocado and sometimes roasted chickpeas.
Try this recipe this week! It will take you less than 30 minutes from grill to plate! For all of you joining me in the FASTer Way to Fat Loss®, it is a great low carb dinner idea! If you want to have it on a Regular Macro day you can pair it with a whole carb like quinoa or brown rice. Let me know what you think!
Ingredients for Marinade/Dressing:
2 tablespoons olive oil
juice of 1 lemon (1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice)
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
2 teaspoons dried basil
2 teaspoons garlic , minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
sea sale and pepper to taste
1 pound (500 g) skinless, boneless chicken thigh fillets (or chicken breasts)
Process:
Mix all ingredients and remember to DOUBLE it so you can use half on the chicken and half as dressing! Marinate chicken for 6-24hrs. Use the other half as dressing.