Harvest Chicken Salad w Apple Cider Dressing

About

A harvest salad is seasonal to colder weather and often features flavors and ingredients you’ll find in season. For this Keto salad recipe, your dish starts with a bed of fresh lettuce greens of your choosing and peppery arugula. Juicy chicken, sunflower seeds, and gouda cheese add flavors of the season. Toasted pecans and an apple cider vinegar dressing really tie everything together for the completed meal. This is a really easy lunch to make for yourself when you’re on the fly. You can also cook batches of chicken in advance and throw your harvest salad together fresh for some Keto meal prepping. Each bite should have the crunch of greens and pecans, creamy gouda, savory chicken, and salty sunflower seeds for a full rounded flavor. You can read further for other in-season additions to this salad and the art of homemade salad dressings.

What Else Can I Add To This Salad?

A harvest salad is enjoyed best during the Autumn and Winter months. You may incorporate other greens that would add pops of flavor to your plate, such as spinach, kale, bok choy, or cabbage. At your discretion, you could substitute or add in additional seasonal veggies. Radish, brussel sprouts, or beets would all add great color. Typical harvest salads would include dried cranberries as well. You may include a very small amount of sugar-free dried cranberries, but be aware that your carbohydrates will pile up quickly. If you’d like to use a different cheese, blue cheese or gorgonzola cheese would add a more powerful flavor but keep the creamy texture.

Making Homemade Salad Dressings

Making your own salad dressings is a really good idea for anyone on the Keto diet. Many store-bought dressings have added sugar or inorganic ingredients which you can easily eliminate in your own recipes. Salads are one of the easiest ways to get a nutrient-dense and filling meal on the Keto diet without maxing our your carb macros. The basics of any homemade dressing are typically 1 part acid to 3 parts oil. Acids can include your favorite vinegar or lemon juice. For the oil, you’ll want to use olive oil in just about every dressing. From there, you can really get creative with your favorite flavors. Season your dressing any way you choose, add in cheeses, or whisk in a flavoring agent like mustard. The options are limitless!

Ingredients

4 ounce raw chicken tenders by foster farms
⅛ teaspoon seasoned salt
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon italian seasoning
⅛ teaspoon onion powder
2 teaspoon olive oil
¾ ounce lettuce
½ ounce arugula
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar by white house
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon, grated parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
½ ounce pecans, raw
1 teaspoon, whole pieces sunflower seeds
1 tablespoon, shredded gouda cheese

Instructions

Make the chicken for the salad by tossing raw chicken tenders with the seasoned salt, black pepper, Italian seasoning, and onion powder. If you don’t have chicken tenders, simply cut a piece of boneless skinless chicken breast for the recipe. Heat the olive oil in a small pan over high heat and place in the seasoned tenders. Cook the tenders for 5-7 minutes with a lid over them, flipping halfway through until they’re cooked through.
Set the chicken tenders aside to rest while you prepare the other salad components. On a plate, arrange the lettuce and arugula. In a small bowl, whisk together the apple cider vinegar, olive oil, parmesan, dijon, and pinches of salt and pepper (at your discretion). You may choose to toss the greens with the dressing immediately or you can serve the dressing on the side for serving.
Return the pan you used earlier to the stover over low heat. Chop and toast the pecans in the pan for about 60 seconds, or until you can smell the nuts roasting. Slice the chicken and add it to your salad greens. Top the salad off with sunflower seeds, shredded gouda cheese, and the toasted pecans. If serving your dressing on the side, make sure to whisk or shake the dressing together before pouring over your salad.