Chinese Chicken Salad

Salads are perfect summer meals.  I try to make one "main course" salad a week. I like to make sure to include some form of protein in a main course salad in order to make it feel more like a meal.  The best part is that main course salads are one dish meals. Make the salad and you are done!

We all loved this salad. In fact, we ran out before everyone got their fill (oops!). My uber picky 4 year old did not eat salads so I put aside some of the chicken for her . If your child likes honey mustard for dipping, you could give them some chicken and dressing. I used leftover grilled chicken breasts on the bone when I made this. But you could cook your own, use a store bought rotisserie chicken, use canned chicken - whatever would work.

Chinese Chicken Salad
1 large head of lettuce, torn or chopped in to bite size pieces
2 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
5-6 green onions, diced
Shredded cheese
Chow mein noodles
Honey Mustard Dijon dressing

Toss all ingredients together in a large bowl. You can pour the dressing on the salad and toss, or add to individual bowls.

Adapted from Tammy's Kitchen Recipes.

Horiatiki Salad (Greek Salad)

During law school, I spent a summer abroad studying law in Athens, Greece.  Having spent a lot of time traveling all over the Middle East prior to starting law school, Athens was a real shock.  But after the summer was over, I had come to really love Athens and Greece.

One of the biggest surprises in Athens was the food.  The food I ate in Greece was very different that the American-Greek food I'd had in the United States.  For example, what we call a "gyro", the Greeks call souvlaki and it's either pork or chicken -- not lamb. In fact, I ate more pork in Greece than I have ever eaten!

Likewise, a salad in Greece does not have any lettuce in it. I can remember dying to get back to the States to have some lettuce! Greece, like most of the Mediterranean, has incredibly delicious produce. I am not a fan of tomatoes, but I couldn't get enough in Greece. Now that summer is upon us and we can get decent produce, Greek salads are a great addition to any meal. Add some tzatiki with french fries and a frappe, and you'll really feel Greek!

Horiatiki Salad (Greek Salad)
1 cucumber, seeded and diced in to cubes
2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
Black or Kalamata olives
Feta cheese
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Mix all the vegetables in a bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle olive oil over the salad and stir gently.