Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Thai Chicken Salad with Peanut Dressing

Things are gettin' hectic!

It's crunch time!

There are cookies everywhere! And fudge.

It can be hard to eat real meals, real food, this time of year. Who has the time or energy to make a big dinner when there are a gazillion cookies to make, frost (eat), presents to wrap, last-minute shopping, AND if you are traveling somewhere you have to do all that and get ready to go!

Craziness.

But it isn't *impossible* to eat a real meal.

On one of your last-minute trips to the grocery store pick up a rotisserie chicken, some mixed salad greens, a small can of coconut milk, and you can have a super quick, nutritious meal in minutes, literally.

The original recipe comes from Cooking Light April 2011. It is one of those recipes that you can use as a guide and add or subtract from based on what is available and ready.


(source)

I threw this together last night in about 10 minutes. I roast a chicken once a week or so just for purposes like this, so I had pre-cook chicken breasts in my fridge. I also had some mixed organic salad greens. I shredded a carrot and chopped up a celery stalk. I didn't have bean sprouts, so I left those out. I did have peanuts, so I chopped those up real quick with my Pampered Chef food chopper.


On the stove I heated a small can of coconut milk, some peanut butter, brown sugar, sprinkle of cayenne, some low sodium soy sauce, and a splash of lemon juice from the bottle. I didn't have fresh limes, so I just used what I had on hand. I've said before, recipes are a *suggestion* or a way to get started, but use what ya got! That's my philosophy anyway.

Now, these pictures are terrible...I don't know why...but the final product is delicious, and literally, 10 minutes to done.



Chris put more dressing on his salad than I did.

I made this dinner in the midst of finishing a batch of cookies. It really is quick and easy and delicious! Plus, it helps to combat the sugar overload from all those cookies I'm (not) eating.

Check out the recipe for Thai Chicken Salad with Peanut Dressing and give yourself the gift of a real, good meal in minutes this week! (Veggie friends: just leave out the chicken! Add some garbanzo beans instead!)

Are you on sugar overload? Have you given up food for treats this week?? Do you have a favorite super quick and healthy meal?

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