Green Chicken Salad with Pretzel Croutons

@cokocooks

I have a delicious green chicken salad to share with you all today, and I could not be more excited about this meal. This salad has fresh vegetables, topped with seasoned cast iron chicken, crispy pretzel croutons, and finished with a homeade honey mustard dressing. Yes that is a lot to put together, but I have no doubt it will be one of your favorite salads. It is also the new year and many people are trying to eat a little bit healthier. I am all about a balanced diet, but this would be a great recipe to have on hand if your are trying to clean up your diet after a heavy holidays. It has a good source of carbs, protein, and fats to make it a well rounded meal. I would eat this salad anytime whether I want a healthy dinner or not because it is just so satisfying and fresh. Each element of this meal allows it to come together to make one of my absolute favorite salads.

Ingredients

This green chicken salad start with a base of lettuce. I just used romaine for the crispness. For the other veggies I just added in some classic cucumber and tomatoes, but feel free to add any vegetable you want. The protein to top the salad is a well seasoned cast iron chicken breast. I love cooking chicken on the cast iron to allow the chicken to stay moist, but still have lots of flavor. The seasoning for the chicken is some dried herbs, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. It is an easy marinade to flavor the chicken. The best part of this salad is the pretzel croutons. These could not be any easier to make thanks to some premade pretzel bites. I just toasted some pretzel bites with a little butter in the oven. Then finally to finish the salad off is some fresh avocado slices.

Dressing

For the dressing, I love a good honey mustard. Honey mustard is such an easy dressing to make, and it pairs well with a variety of foods. The tang with the slight sweetness makes this one of my favorite dressing. For this honey mustard,  I love to use a ground dijon mustard for some texture. Olive oil is the base of the dressing and then ofcouse some honey is used to sweeten it. Then with a little lemon juice, salt, pepper, and garlic the dressing is done.

Every element of  this salad really makes this meal come together. You have the crisp vegetables, the salty pretzels, the seasoned chicken, the buttery avocado, and the tangy dressing. You taste buds will be going crazy with this salad in the best way possible! So whether you are eating a little healthier for the new year or you just want a tasty meal I hope you love this salad. If you are a salad fan be sure to check out my mexican salad with cilantro ranch.

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Green Chicken Salad with Pretzel Croutons

A green chicken salad with pretzel croutons and a homeade honey mustard dressing.

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

marinating chicken 12 hours hours

Servings 0

Ingredients

Cast Iron Chicken

• 3 large chicken breast
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tbsp dried oregano
• 2 tbsp dried parsley
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1/2 tbsp ground pepper

Pretzel Croutons

• 1 pkg or about 6 oz. store bought pretzel bits or pretzel buns
• 2-3 tbsp butter

Salad

• 1 large head romaine lettuce
• 1 large seedless cucumber
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• 1 large avocado

Honey Mustard Dressing

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup dijon mustard
• 1 juice of a lemon
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Add the chicken and all the marianade ingredients to a large plastic bag. Massage the chicken and let it sit for 12-24 hours
• After the chicken has set, preheat oven to 375. Heat a cast iron skillet on hi heat and spray with avocado oil. Place each slice of chicken on the cast iron skillet and let it brown on each side for about 2-3 minutes.
• After both sides have a golden brown crust let it finish in the oven for about 10 minutes or until complete cooked depending on how thick the chicken is.
• Line a roasting pan with parchment paper and while the chicken is in the oven quarter the pretzel bites so they are crouton size. Then in a microwave safe bowl melt the butter.
• Spread the pretzels on the roasting pan and toss with the butter. Add a sprinkle of salt if not yet added to the pretzel buns. Place in the oven for 5-10 minutes just until golden brown.
• Chop the lettuce, cucumber, tomato, and avocado and place in a large bowl. Slice the chicken and add it to the bowl. Finish with the croutons.
• In a shaker bottle add all the honey mustard ingredients and shake until it is well combined. Toss with the salad or serve to the side and then it is ready to eat.

ENJOY!

Follow me on @_cokocooks and feel free to DM with questions or just tell me what you think

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