Make: 200-Calorie Grilled Chicken and Grapefruit Salad
Confession: There is a homemade cherry pie in my fridge that I’ve been systematically devouring over the past few days, bit by scrumptious bit. This, in direct contradiction to the sentiment I expressed to my mother just the other day: I told her (okay, bragged) that it’s easy to stay trim through the holiday season. I explained that whenever it was up to her, she should eat broth-based soup or a big salad, light on the dressing. To me, this is a practical, holiday-themed approach to the “80-20 rule” (eat what you should eat 80 percent of the time, and what you want to eat for the other 20 percent).
To offset all that pie, salad has been my savior—a really, really big salad, to be exact. In my opinion, the best meals involve lots of chewing for not a lot of calories.
So I’d like to introduce to you my latest creation, which I’m lovingly calling “Big Salad with Grilled Chicken and Grapefruit Vinaigrette.” If chicken isn’t your jam or if you want to serve this as a side salad, omit the poultry and sub in toasted walnuts. You really can’t go wrong here.
Big Salad with Grilled Chicken and Grapefruit Vinaigrette
Serves two as a main dish, four to six as a side (without the chicken)
1 pink grapefruit, halved and segmented, 3 tbsp. juice reserved
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. olive oil mayonnaise
1 tbsp. honey mustard
1 tsp. poppy seeds
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
1 head green leaf lettuce, leaves torn, washed and dried
1 thinly sliced shallot
1 large chicken breast, cooked and sliced
Method
1. Whisk reserved grapefruit juice, olive oil, mayonnaise, honey mustard, poppy seeds, salt and pepper together in small mixing bowl.
2. Combine lettuce, shallot, chicken and grapefruit segments in a large mixing bowl and toss with dressing to evenly coat.
3. Serve, adding salt and pepper to taste.
Per serving (main dish): 201 calories, 9.5 fat grams (including 1.1 grams saturated fat), 37 milligrams cholesterol, 686 milligrams sodium, 14.3 grams carbs, 2.8 grams dietary fiber, 9.3 grams sugar, 16.1 grams protein.
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Becca Boyd is a wife and mom who creates healthy and delicious recipes in her West Chester kitchen. She blogs about them on her website, Home Beccanomics.
