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Easy Chicken Caesar Salad

Easy-Chicken-Caesar-salad-Spoonful-Stories

Easy Chicken Caesar Salad with a low fat and worry free dressing is a juicy and healthy salad. It is simple to toss and delicious to eat when topped with this creamy, low fat and homemade Caesar dressing. 

I recommend, Caesar Salad is a must for everyone to have in their recipe files and this recipe will definitely not disappoint you. It is flavourful and satisfying! Makes for the perfect summer dinner or an evening snack. 

Making this Caesar Salad is extremely easy. It is all about the topping and the creamy, delicious dressing, like it is in most salads. The original Caesar Salad Dressing contains eggs and anchovies, but I am not a fan of either. I prefer not to have these two ingredients in my salad bowl. 

So, I have modified the salad dressing recipe, which is still creamy and delicious without eggs and anchovies. 

What goes in a Caesar Salad? 

There are many variations for this salad, but a classic Caesar Salad contains:

  • Croutons – I make the croutons at home
  • Caesar Salad Dressing – Low fat, creamy and homemade
  • Romaine Lettuce or Iceberg – To enjoy the crunch and juiciness 
  • Parmesan Cheese – For garnishing 

But, another common ingredient that you will find in many restaurants is chicken and egg. These two ingredients definitely add more protein to the salad and at the same time make it even more tempting. I always add chicken to my Caesar Salad but otherwise it’s optional if you would like to add it to your salad bowl. 

How to make homemade croutons?

Hoemmade-Croutons-Spoonful-Stories

Homemade croutons are definitely the best! There are two ways of making them at home, in the air fryer or simply baking them in the oven. 

  • How to make croutons in the air fryer: Remove the crust of the bread (optional) and cut the bread into small cubes. Drizzle with 1-2 tablespoon olive oil, sprinkle with salt and let them cook in the air fryer until golden and crispy. Shaking the tray once in between This will take about 7-10 minutes.
  • How to make croutons in the oven: Remove the crust of the bread (optional) and cut the bread into cubes. Drizzle the bread with 1-2 tablespoon olive oil, salt and bake until golden and crispy. This process shall take 7-10 minutes if it is a sandwich bread. Sourdough will slightly take longer, up to 15 minutes. Shake the tray once in between for the croutons to cook evenly. 

Homemade Caesar Salad Dressing

Now you can say goodbye to bottled Caesar dressing because this homemade, creamy and delicious Caesar dressing is the only way forward! 

The dressing is easy to throw together and requires ingredients that are easily available in anyone’s pantry. It is the perfect blend of so many robust flavours that blend in together perfectly. The best part about this salad dressing is that it is low fat and lesser in calories in comparison to all the other dressings out there in the market. But with this recipe, you will still have a rich and creamy dressing. 

The ingredients needed are low fat mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, soy sauce, salt, pepper, olive oil, and finely diced garlic. Yes it is that simple! 

I hope you enjoy this delicious and healthy bowl of Caesar Salad. If you have any suggestion please do leave them in the comments section below. 

Also, if you are a salad person like me, try out the Asian Kale Salad and the Lemon Herb Grilled Chicken Salad. These two salad recipes are easy to toss and taste delicious at the same time!

Easy Chicken Caesar Salad

Recipe by Ishana PassiCourse: Non-Vegetarian, SaladsDifficulty: Easy
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

10

minutes
Cooking time

15

minutes
Total time

25

minutes

Easy Chicken Caesar Salad with a low fat and worry free dressing is a juicy and healthy salad. It is simple to toss and delicious to eat!

Ingredients

  • 1 romaine lettuce

  • 400 gms chicken breast

  • 3-4 slices bread

  • 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes

  • Dressing
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice

  • 2 tbsp olive oil

  • 2 cloves minced garlic

  • 1 spoon soy sauce

  • 2 tbsp low fat mayonnaise

  • 1 tsp mustard

  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  • Cut the lettuce into pieces, wash the leaves well and set aside to dry. Cut the cherry tomatoes into half and set aside.
  • Slice the chicken into small pieces and marinate it in thyme, pinch paprika, turmeric and salt, spoon olive oil. Heat a pan to medium heat, add the chicken and cook until golden brown and crispy. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
  • Cut the bread into slices. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and let them cook in the air fryer for about 7-10 minutes until golden crispy.
  • In a bowl prepare the salad dressing by whisking together all the salad dressing ingredients. Whisk until well combined.
  • In a large bowl place the lettuce, cherry tomatoes, croutons and the sliced chicken and coat with the salad dressing. Mix well and serve.
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Thai Cucumber Salad

How-to-make-thai-cucumber-salad-recipe-spoonful-stories

This Thai cucumber salad is sweet and tangy, one of my favourite healthy summer salads! The salad is sweet, spicy, crunchy and refreshing! Perfect for a hot summer day, always a hit at picnics and potlucks!

This Thai cucumber salad is a healthy side dish that is easier to make and bursting with fresh and tangy flavours. 

Who doesn’t crave a refreshing summer salad in the months of May and June? Dad and I are always thinking of healthy and refreshing salads to make in this hot season. We thoroughly enjoy salads that are cool yet healthy and amazingly delicious on a hot summer evening. The Thai cucumber salad is perfect for an evening like this. 

This Thai cucumber salad is made out of english cucumbers, but you can also use the regular cucumbers which are easily available anywhere. English cucumbers are long, slender, with tiny seeds and tender skin. I usually prefer the english cucumbers for the salad but feel free to use the regular ones. 

This salad is a quick fix, every time you have guests coming over last minute or are craving something refreshing and tangy, this is the recipe your loved ones will truly binge eat! 

It’s quick and simple, super simple to toss up, and can be prepared ahead of time if you desire.

This is a recipe that can be pulled out any minute you like and used for numerous occasions. But more than anything this cucumber salad recipe is amazingly delicious!

The dressing is sweet, salty, tangy and with a hint of chilli! The best part is the juice of the cucumbers seep into the dressing which truly enhances the flavour. 

Thai dressing

The Thai dressing for the salad is truly simple to whisk. It includes the usual pantry staples which you will definitely have. Sugar, fish sauce, lemon juice, sesame oil, and apple cider vinegar or rice vinegar. You can also simply whisky together water, Thai sweet chilli sauce, sugar and apple cider vinegar. 

You can eat this salad on its own or simply serve it as a side dish. This summer salad recipe is truly satisfying when eaten with a handful of roasted peanuts. If you want a full meal try pairing this cucumber salad recipe with my Lemon Herb Grilled Chicken Salad or as a side dish with grilled fish or chicken. 

Thai cucumber salad variations

Feel like tweaking the recipe a bit?

  • Add Vegetables – Feel free to add finely shredded vegetables such as carrots, red cabbage or snow peas. 
  • Creamy Texture – For a creamy texture add a few slices of avocado.
  • Thai Basil – Have some leftover Thai basil? Chop up a few leaves finely and add it to the cucumber salad. This would add some extra flavour to the salad.
  • Make it Hot – Want the salad hot and fiery? Finely chop some fresh red chillies and add it to the dressing. 

I hope you enjoy this easy summer salad, please ask many questions that you have in the comments sections.

Thai Cucumber Salad

Recipe by Ishana PassiCourse: Salads, VegetarianDifficulty: Easy
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

15

minutes
Cooking time

5

minutes
Total time

20

minutes

The salad is sweet, spicy, crunchy and refreshing! Perfect for a hot summer day, always a hit at picnics and potlucks!

Ingredients

  • 2 cucumbers, finely sliced

  • 1 tbsp peanuts, crushed

  • 1/2 onion, finely sliced

  • 1 tsp chopped cilantro

  • Dressing
  • 2 tsp honey

  • juice of 1 lemon

  • 1 spoon apple cider vinegar/ white vinegar

  • 1 spoon sesame oil

  • 2 tsp fish sauce

Directions

  • Finely slice the cucumber using a vegetable peeler and drizzle the salt on top and mix well. Leave aside in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes.
  • Make the dressing by whisking all the ingredients for the dressing together.
  • Drain the salt water from the cucumber completely. Toss the onions, and incorporate with the dressing.
  • Top with peanuts and cilantro and serve chilled.
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Greek Watermelon and Cottage Cheese Salad

How-to-make-greek-watermelon-cottage-cheese-feta-salad

It’s the Greek summer favourite!

I know the minute you read Watermelon and Cottage Cheese Salad, you thought to yourself what a strange combination. This combination is not only refreshing but delicious too! One spoonful of this refreshing summer salad will leave you convinced that the combination of watermelon and cottage cheese is truly divine!

This easy summer salad is a favourite at our dinner table. We normally eat it as an evening snack or light meal. The sweet and salty mix of cottage cheese and watermelon definitely keeps us cool and refreshed during the hot summer days! 

It is the perfect summer salad recipe to toss up at the last minute if you have guests coming over or just want to cool yourself down after a tiring summer day! This vibrant bowl of watermelon is sure to add colour to any dinner table while you indulge in a feast with your loved ones.

Watermelon being the juicy summer fruit, icy cold cubes of it and crumbled salty cottage cheese salad is a Greek summer favourite. I have adapted this recipe from the classic Greek watermelon feta mix, making it easier to toss it up last minute by using cottage cheese instead of feta. The saltiness of the cottage cheese makes it the perfect substitute for feta. This variation includes thin slices of onion, a handful of seeds of your choice, a touch of freshly chopped vibrant mint leaves and a tangy lemon vinaigrette dressing. I have used pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and flax seeds to add a slight crunch.

All the ingredients required are the everyday pantry staples that we all have.  

It’s important you choose ingredients wisely and pick a juicy, ripe watermelon and fresh cottage cheese for your salad. How to pick the perfect juicy, ripe watermelon? 

The perfect watermelon for your salad

This is one of the tricky parts about choosing a watermelon as you don’t know what is inside. Most people check if the watermelon is ripe by tapping it. But another way to check is by lifting it.

Is the watermelon heavy according to its size? Compare it with the weight of another watermelon of the same size. The heavier the watermelon the ripest it is, which indicates that it is full of water. Also, take a close look at the colour of the watermelon. For the salad pick a dark and dull green watermelon instead of a light and shiny green one. This will make the perfect watermelon for your salad. 

The salad provides a lot of hydration from the watermelon, essential fatty acids and a full profile of amino acids along with vitamin A, B, C and E from the sunflower, pumpkin and flax seeds.  

Pair this refreshing salad with a chilled glass of wine and a chunk of bread. You can have it with any grilled meat such as chicken or fish, it’s a lovely light dinner. I recommend you to go out of your comfort zone and give this combination try. This is one of the best summer salads to indulge in on a hot day. I’m sure this watermelon and cottage cheese salad will become a favourite on your table. Just the way it did on ours!

Lets see how to prepare the Watermelon and Cottage Cheese Salad

Greek Watermelon and Cottage Cheese Salad

Recipe by Ishana PassiCourse: Salads, VegetarianDifficulty: Easy
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

10

minutes
Cooking time

5

minutes
Total time

15

minutes

Ingredients SALAD

  • 1 handful chopped fresh mint leaves

  • 3 cups cubed, cold watermelon

  • 1/3 cup crumbled cottage cheese

  • 1 handful mixed seeds

  • DRESSING
  • 1tbsp olive oil

  • juice of 1 lemon

  • Rock salt to taste

  • Pepper to taste

  • 1 tsp honey

Directions

  • Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing and refrigerate.
  • Add the chopped mint leaves, watermelon, onion, cottage cheese and the seeds to a large salad bowl.
  • Drizzle the dressing and toss it all together.
  • Serve chilled.

Also try the Lemon Herb Grilled Chicken Salad