Monday, January 30, 2012

The Best Warm Winter Salad EVER!

Roasted Chicken and Arugula Salad with Sweet Potatoes and Balsamic Tomatoes.
Fresh Ingredients
Simple dressing
Ripe cherry tomatoes roasted with balsamic vinegar and pepper and a tiny bit of salt
Roast sweet potatoes with salt, pepper, and olive oil
Balsamic roasted cherry tomatoes
Perfectly roasted sweet potatoes with olive oil, salt and pepper
Shredded roasted chicken breasts
Ready to eat!
When it's freezing cold and grey outside, the only things I find myself wanting to eat are hearty stews and pastas covered in some type of cream. And unluckily for me, I always have someone who is willing to indulge with me (or egg me on...I'm not naming names). So when a very good friend and I found ourselves trapped in her flat in London during a chilly down-pour, we decided to try something a little new, healthy, and very filling.

For 2 people, you will need

2 LARGE SWEET POTATOES
1 PACKAGE OF CHERRY TOMATOES
1 PACKAGE OF ARUGULA
2 BONELESS, SKINLESS CHICKEN BREASTS
 (or a roasted chicken from the grocery store works just as well)
PARMESAN CHEESE
BALSAMIC VINEGAR
OLIVE OIL
KOSHER SALT + PEPPER

Dressing

1 LEMON
DIJON MUSTARD
OLIVE OIL
KOSHER SALT+PEPPER




Start off by pre-heating your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200 degrees Centigrade). Peel and chop your sweet potatoes into 1 inch pieces (or however large or small you like them. Just remember to keep the sizes consistent). Place in a roasting pan with enough olive oil to coat the potatoes, some kosher salt, and pepper. Place in the oven and roast for about 15/20 minutes, until they are tender and brown around the edges. In the meantime, place the cherry tomatoes in a separate, small roasting pan. Coat with about 1/2 Cup balsamic Vinegar (I've found the more vinegar here the better), and a lot of pepper. Place tomatoes in the oven. It usually takes about 10 minutes for the tomatoes, but I've noticed that it depends on how ripe they are and the oven...so keep checking regularly. They should start to wrinkle and the vinegar should be caramelized on the bottom of the pan. For the chicken (if you are using uncooked), cut the breasts into medium size chunks so they will cook faster, coat in olive oil, with a little salt and pepper, and place in oven to roast for about 15 minutes. If your oven isn't large enough, just wait till the tomatoes are done and replace with the chicken...you can make the dressing while it cooks (recipe below). When all hot ingredients are roasted, shred the chicken with a fork (or your hands). Place arugula in a bowl, with the tomatoes, potatoes, chicken, and sprinkle with parmesan (I have also added pumpkin seeds to this in the past, and it's delicious). Toss with dressing and enjoy!

For dressing: 4 TBSP olive oil, juice of 1 lemon, 2 TSP dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Whisk all ingredients in a bowl...and you're done! Easiest dressing ever!

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