Pistachio Strawberry Chicken Salad

Hey Friends! A few days back I was invited to do a #passthedish takeover on Alex Snodgrass’s instagram page, @thedefineddish. 

It was so much fun, and I shared my favorite super easy salmon recipe. That night, I showed you my favorite salad dressing/ marinade.  Today I wanted to share the recipe along with one of my favorite salads to eat during the spring and summer.

When I worked in the cosmetic industry, I started out at Nordstrom. One of my favorite parts of the day was eating lunch at the Café/Bistro. I don’t know how, but I swear Nordstrom always had THEEE best salads! From their Cilantro Lime Shrimp salad, to their Salmon Nicoise…. the flavors just burst and compliment one another perfectly. 

Well, their Pistachio Chicken Salad is no exception.  Strawberries, chicken and pistachios just work so well together. I decided to recreate a version of their salad using what I had on hand, and mannnnn it didn’t disappoint! 

This salad is so light and filled with flavor. You could forgo the chicken altogether and just add a few more types of nuts and seeds for an extra dose of protein. 

Serves 2 

Salad Ingredients: 

4 cups Spring Mix Lettuce 

1 cup Strawberries, sliced 

1/2 cup Blueberries or sliced red grapes

1/4 cup dried cranberries or raisins 

1/2 cup Pistachios, chopped

2 Chicken breasts- cooked and sliced 

Optional: 2 Hard Boiled eggs, sliced 

1. Chop lettuce and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste  (the secret to a good salad!)
2. Arrange all ingredients on top of lettuce 
3. Drizzle with salad dressing (recipe below!)

That’s it!

You guys, it’s so delicious. The Nordstrom version omits the eggs and uses dried cranberries instead of raisins, and red grapes instead of blueberries. Since raisins are naturally sweet I decided to use those instead of cranberries. I had a ton of blueberries in the fridge and no grapes, so why not?!

Give this salad a try and use your own variations! 

Recipe for My Favorite Salad Dressing 

Ingredients: 

1/4 cup Balsamic (I like Costco Kirkland brand) 

1 TBS Dijon (you can use a bit less if you’re not a dijon fan)

1/2 tsp Freshly ground black pepper 

1 or 1 1/2 tsp Kosher salt (to taste)

1 Tsp dried or 1 TBS fresh herbs of choice 

3/4 cup Olive oil or Avocado Oil 

Dressing directions: 

1. In medium bowl, Whisk everything together except oil
2. Slowly drizzle oil into bowl while whisking continuously until all the oil is incorporated and you have a thick dressing 

(You can also use this as a marinade for chicken breasts or thighs! So good!)

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and thank you for stopping by! Don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss a post!