yummy curry salad

Posted on September 15, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

Lunch Group is back in action after a three week hiatus. (Robyn, aren’t you excited?) So, here’s my latest. Dianne made it over the summer, but I loved it so much, I wanted it again. (I’m a little behind on postings, but I’ll catch up with the Weight Watchers update-not good-and running). In the meantime, enjoy a great salad. Oh, and the recipe is for two servings…what you see above is a triple batch.

Ingredients

6 oz chicken breasts, cooked and cubed (you can also a 6 oz can of chicken)
½ cup celery, diced (I sliced it super thin…I’m not a huge celery fan, but I really like it in this salad)
½ cup chopped green onion
½ c diced green pepper (I went a little easier on the peppers…Dianne forgot to put them in hers and I loved it, so I didn’t want to over power the salad)
4 T water chestnuts (I don’t love these either, but they are delicious in this salad)
1 c red or green grapes (I chose red for color)
½ tsp curry powder
4 T fat-free mayonnaise
½ c plain non-fat yogurt
1 T lemon juice
1 c cooked rice or shell pasta (I am a huge brown rice fan, so that’s what I used).
½ t sweetener (I forgot this, but it was fine)

Other recommended seasonings, to taste (didn’t use any):

1 t Nice N Spicy or Mrs. Dash
½ t Lemon Pepper
½ t salt
¼ Dill

Mix all ingredients together and adjust seasonings to taste. Salad should be refrigerated 2-3 hours before serving to combine flavors.

Makes 2 servings.
5 points per serving

fajita salad with creamy cilantro-lime sauce

Posted on August 9, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

I modified the recipe slightly. For the original recipe, click here. And, while the picture may not be the best, I promise you the salad is delicious. The list of ingredients is what I used, although you could really using anything in the “taco salad acceptable” realm (I think avocados would be excellent on this). Seriously, it’s the sauce that makes the salad and it’s 100% fat-free. This is my new favorite.

Ingredients:

Salad:

1 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp taco seasoning (my simplification of the five ingredients in the original)
1 pound skinned, boned chicken breast — cut into thin strips
Cooking spray
6 c shredded romaine lettuce
1 c sliced red onion – separated into rings
1/2 c shredded reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese
1 (15-ounce) can black beans – rinsed and drained
1 c grape tomatoes, halved

Creamy Cilantro-Lime Sauce:

1/2 c fat-free sour cream
1/2 c fat-free mayonnaise
1/3 cup skim milk
3 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 large garlic cloves — minced

Directions:

Combine olive oil and taco seasoning in a medium bowl. Add chicken; toss to coat. Place a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat until hot. Add chicken mixture; sauté 8 minutes or until chicken is done. Set aside.

Divide lettuce and next 5 ingredients (lettuce through tomato) among bowls; top with chicken mixture. Serve with Creamy Cilantro-Lime Sauce.

To make Creamy Cilantro-Lime Sauce: Combine all ingredients in a small food processor (the original said to whisk it, but when using fat-free ingredii, I’ve found the food processor works much better to get that cream consistency). Cover sauce, and chill.

I didn’t calculate points, but my guess is about 5, with the chicken and the sauce.

vietnamese chicken salad

Posted on July 26, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

It has recently come to my attention that I am not very good at reading all the way through a recipe before making it (and that, even if I do, I sometimes glaze over important steps), thereby making mistakes along the way. Case in point, this recipe tells you to poach, cool and shred the chicken. I, however, cooked it on a grill pan.

So, I am telling you now, if you are going to make this recipe, read all the way through it. The chicken doesn’t go onto the salad until after the dressing, and the peanuts go on last of all.

Salad

5 c sliced green cabbage
1 c julienned carrots
1/2 c shredded red onion
1/4 c fresh mint chopped
1/4 c cilantro chopped
1 lb chicken breast, poached, cooled and shredded
1/2 c roasted peanuts, chopped

Dressing

6 Tbsp fresh lime juice (must be fresh)
1/4 c fish sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp Asian chili sauce

Combine cabbage, carrots, onion, mint and cilantro. Add dressing. Add chicken. Let stand for 10 minutes. Add peanuts to top.

Yields 6 servings: 5 points each

tomato and rice salad with chicken

Posted on July 19, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

This is a recipe I got from my friend and yours, the Internet. However, I made a few adjustments, including adding chicken, to make the salad more of a meal than a side dish. You can find the original recipe here.

Ingredients:

3 c. cooked whole grain rice (read – brown)
2 medium ripe tomatoes, chopped, plus juices
1/4 c. finely chopped red onion
1/4 c. finely chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
2 tsp. olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 lb), cut into pieces
seasoning for chicken (I used a little cumin, garlic powder and salt)

Preparation:

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Season chicken. Add olive oil to skillet. Add chicken and cook through…I wish I could tell you how long that takes, but I can’t…maybe 6 minutes. Just make sure it’s not pink inside so you don’t kill someone.

Combine rice, chopped tomatoes, onion, cilantro, lime juice and chicken in a medium bowl. Toss well.

Serves 6: 4 points per serving.

The original recipe recommends that you cover and refrigerate the salad until ready to serve. However, because I needed to taste it to make sure that it was good, (I hate trying a new recipe when other people are going to be eating it…but with my lunch group, there’s just no other way), I discovered that it is also delicious warm.

This one was a hit, for sure. One of the girls in my group said it was her favorite so far, although Dianne made a delicious chicken curry salad that I would put at the top. I’ll make that one in a few weeks and post the recipe with pictures. Delicious!

red bean salad with feta and peppers

Posted on July 11, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

So, Dianne and I were out running about a month ago (she’s the one who lit the running fire under my butt) and we were talking about food (yes, while running) and she mentioned how fun it might be to get a little salad group going at work. Get five of us and we would each have one day a week when we would be responsible for feeding the group. Well, she was off at the time (oh, to be on a ten month contract), so we didn’t get it started until this week.

Dianne started it off with a bang. She made this amazing Black Bean and Corn Salad. She even calculated the points out (a few of us at work, including Dianne, are on or have been on Weight Watcher’s) so that we wouldn’t have to do any math. I only wish that I had my camera with me on Monday because it was as pretty as it was delicious. Seriously!

Well, Wednesday is my day, so on Monday I got online to find some recipes (I love the internet) and found a couple of great websites with Weight Watcher’s recipes. But one particular recipe stood out to me…and I now know that it is delicious!

Red Bean Salad with Feta and Peppers

1 can (19 oz) kidney beans
1 sweet red pepper, chopped
2 c. cabbage, finely chopped (red or green…but I like the color with the green)
2 green onions, chopped (I used the entire onion…white to green)
4 oz feta cheese, cubed (roughly 1 cup)
1/4 c. fresh parsley, chopped (I cut this in half and I used flat leaf or Italian parsley)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp oil (I used extra virgin olive oil)

Drain kidney beans and rinse under cold water. In salad bowl, combine beans, red pepper, cabbage, onions, cheese, parsley, garlic, lemon juice and oil; toss to mix. Cover and refrigerate up to three days.