Recipe of the day: Chicken pumpkin salad

As Gauteng residents try to stay cool amid another week of sweltering heat, they’re looking for light meals that require minimal effort. If you’re a little over your usual Greek and bean salad sides, why not give this chicken pumpkin salad a try. Not only is it healthy, it’ll only take you 30 minutes to make

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Chicken pumpkin salad

Ingredients

For the Roasted Pumpkin

• 600g Butternut Pumpkin, cut into 1.5 cm pieces
• 1 tbs Olive oil
• Salt and pepper, to taste

For the Chicken

• 600g Chicken breast, cut in thin strips
• Olive oil for frying

Balsamic Dressing

• 80ml Balsamic vinegar
• 40ml Honey
• 100ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Salt and pepper, to taste

For the Salad

• 1 can Chickpeas, drained
• 1 punnet Cherry tomatoes, halved
• 140g Baby spinach leaves
• 200g Snow peas, trim and remove strings

 Optional variations

• 100g Feta cheese, crumbled.
• 40g Pine nuts

Method

Preheat the oven to 220°C.

Roast the pumpkin

1. Toss the pumpkin with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
2. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Place the pumpkin in a single layer on the tray.
3. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden and tender. Avoid overcooking the pumpkin, it should be just tender, not mushy.

Chicken

Meanwhile, heat some oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Season the chicken and cook for 4-6 minutes or until cooked through, depending on how thin it was sliced.

For the Dressing

1. In a screw-top jar, combine the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and honey. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Shake the jar until well combined. Taste and adjust seasoning. The dressing will initially have a tangy strong flavour, but will mellow out once combined with all the ingredients.

Assemble the salad

1. Combine chickpeas, tomatoes, spinach, pumpkin, snow peas, and chicken in a serving platter.
2. Add as much dressing as you like and toss well.
3. Serve with remaining dressing and add toppings below if you like.

Optional toppings

1. Add half the feta just before tossing the salad in the assembly step.
2. Then top the salad with the remaining feta just before serving.
3. Toast the pine nuts lightly in a dry frying pan, just until golden brown. Take care not to burn, and remove as soon as they start to brown. Top the salad just before serving.

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*This recipe was sourced from www.myconvenientkitchen.com and re-published with permission.