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Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Lighter Taco Salad


Yesterday we were the HOTTEST city in the Nation.  102 degrees friends, I know crazy!!
So, for the last couple of days we have been eating salads for dinner, quick, easy, and light.
You may remember awhile back I did a review for Cheftalk on Ellie Krieger's book So Easy.  It had a pretty good taco salad recipe in it that everyone in the family liked.
I decided to put my own spin on it and everyone gobbled it up.
If you are looking for a nice summer dinner this is a great one.  Get your kids involved in prepping the ingredients.  They can help with crushing chips, shredding cheese, etc...
It's cooling down here now,thankfully.  When I stepped outside this morning I drank in the fresh air.
Have a beautiful day!
xoxo
Rachel


Lighter Taco Salad

Meat:
1 pound ground chicken or turkey
1/2 cup of dried beans soaked and cooked or one can of low sodium black beans,drained and rinsed
2 cloves of garlic minced
1/2 cup of water
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon of cumin

Dressing:
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro
1 tsp. kosher salt
fresh ground pepper

Salad:
1 head of romaine lettuce, chopped
1/2-1 cup grated cheese
Crushed tortilla chips (baked variety if you like)
2 cups of cooked corn
2-4 green onions chopped

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add the chicken and cook until it is no longer pink, breaking it up into pieces.  Add the beans and garlic and cook for a couple of minutes more.  Add the water and spices and mix until well combined.  Remove from the heat and set aside to cool a bit.
In a medium bowl, combine the tomatoes and their juices, oil, lime juice, salt, pepper, and cilantro.  Set aside until ready to serve.
To assemble place two large handfuls of lettuce on each plate.  Top with the chicken mixture, sprinkle with cheese, green onions, and corn.  Place tomato dressing on top and sprinkle with chips.

5 comments:

  1. Glad to see you survived the heat too, Rachel! This salad looks like the perfect summer meal.

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  2. That looks absolutley delish! I love the colors - the yellow of the corn contrasted with the red of the tomatoes.

    102 degrees! Yikes! We're getting up into the 90s today, which is extremely warm for NH. I've got salad plans tonight myself for dinner!

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  3. We just had taco salad last night! I'll try that dressing next time though...

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  4. Look looks super yummy! It's going on my shopping list. Isn't this heat just crazy!?!?

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  5. Sounds tasty!!! I love taco salad. Funny I started a blog yesterday on two salads that I have made so far this spring!

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Thanks for your comments.