Buffalo Chicken Salad

In my continuing quest to eat healthily today I made myself a most delicious Buffalo Chicken Salad for my lunch, once again pinching and adapting it from a recipe I found in the cookery book, "The Food You Crave," by Ellie Krieger. (Fabulous book by the way. Everything tastes so good!)



I didn't have chicken breasts, but I did have chicken tenders and so I used them instead. I just popped them into a plastic baggie and pounded them a bit with the bottom of the vinegar bottle, so that they were of an even thickness throughout.



I had some Louisanna Hot Sauce that someone had gifted me with, so I used that, but you can use Tabasco or any other hot sauce you may have. (Taste it first to see how hot it is and adjust accordingly.) I also sprinkled mine with some paprika for colour, and seasoned it lightly with some fine sea salt. (I am trying to break the salt habit, but it's hard!)



Ellie called for grating the carrot, but I thought cutting the carrot into ribbons with a vegetable peeler was much prettier and gave a nice texture to the dish. As well, I used a baby gem lettuce, broken into leaves as I had cut the salad ingredients back to feed only one. (My man is not a salad man per se. Salad for lunch. He's just not going there!)



The real winner here is that luciously rich salad dressing. It's hard to believe that it is low fat! It's creamy and just wonderful and full of flavour. I used Danish Blue Cheese and it's just marvelous how much flavour just a little blue cheese can add!!



All in all I gave this salad a rousing 10 out of 10, for ease, for presentation and for taste! Just call me one very happy camper! Low fat and low calorie doesn't have to equate with low taste.



*Buffalo Chicken Salad*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

A delicious chicken salad with crisp vegetables, spicy chicken tenders and a fabulous low fat blue cheese dressing!

For the salad:
1 pound chicken tenders (or boneless skinless chicken breast meat, pounded and cut into 1/2
inch thick strips.)
2 TBS hot pepper Sauce (Tabasco, Louisianna, or some similar sauce)
2 tsp olive oil
1 heart of Romaine lettuce, cut into 1 inch wide strips (about 8 cups)
4 stalks of celery, trimmed and thinly sliced
2 medium carrots, peeled and thinly sliced into strips with a vegetable parer
2 spring onions, the green part only, thinly sliced (scallions)
1/2 cup of the blue cheese dressing (see below)

Preheat the grill of your oven to high. Put the chicken tenders in a plastic bag and pound out to an even thickness. Place in a bowl and combine with the hot sauce and olive oil, tossing well to coat. Arrange on a baking sheet and put until the grill. Grill for about 4 to 6 minutes, until cooked through, turning once halfway through the cooking time.

Combine the lettuce, celery, carrot and spring onions in a large bowl. Divide between 4 chilled plates. Top with the warm chicken. Drizzle each with a portion of the dressing.

*Blue Cheese Dressing*
Makes 3/4 cup

Delicious "light" version of a classic blue cheese dressing.

2 fluid ounces of plain non fat yoghurt (1/4 cup)
2 fluid ounces of nonfat buttermilk (1/4 cup)
2 TBS low fat or no fat mayonnaise
1 TBS white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp white sugar
75g of crumbled blue cheese (1/3 cup)
fine seasalt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Whisk the yoghurt, buttermilk, mayonnaise and vinegar together until smooth. Whisk in the sugar until it dissolves. Stir in the crumbled blue cheese and season to taste. Cover and refrigerate any leftovers.



And in The Cottage today, Bread Bowl Meatball Sandwiches.