Skinny Chicken & Stuffin' Salad

This just so happens to be the Little Black Dress of the salad world.

It's also an ideal place to start if you're trying to shimmy back into your actual LBD.



Allow me to cast your mind back a couple of weeks. Remember hungrily browsing the sandwich aisle at lunch and locking eyes with the all exclusive, sparkly red festive range? (I'm going to assume you just nodded and drooled simultaneously.)

Well, I had a particular penchant for the chicken, stuffing and cranberry variety.



My Skinny Chicken & Stuffin' Salad is essentially just that with a low carb January twist. First thing first. Whack these on the shopping list:

For the salad (to feed two people)
1 pack leafy salad (spinach, rocket, lamb's lettuce all work well)
1/2 an iceberg lettuce
1/2 a cucumber
3 x skinless, free range chicken breasts
1 cup 'just add water' sage and onion based stuffing mixture

For the dressing
3 tbsp cranberry sauce (you'll find this in exile at the back of your fridge)
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp good quality extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
1 x lemon

Start by seasoning your breasts and stop being so naughty, you filthy animal!



Pop them in a pre-heated oven at around 200°c until cooked through and crisp on the outside. Depending on the thickness of your chicken they can take between 20-30 minutes. If  in doubt, slice one open and take a peek. If it's pink, it's not done yet.

In the meantime, prepare your stuffing according to the instructions on the packet. Crisp it up under the grill if you have the time, otherwise just pop it in the microwave for around three minutes and enjoy its natural gooey deliciousness.



Feel free to make your mixture from scratch if you'd rather. I'm only leaving it to Sainsbury's because, well, who the heck has the time to make homemade stuffing?!

Chop your iceberg lettuce into strips and throw it into a bowl with the rest of your leaves. Dice your cucumber and toss it all together good 'n' proper.

Whilst your stuffing is cooking, knock together your dressing. In a bowl, add your cranberry sauce, olive oil, mustard, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar before giving it a stir and crushing in your garlic. Season with salt and pepper.

At this point, your roast chicken should be ready. Remove it from the oven and squeeze over the lemon juice. I like mine really lemony, so I use a whole half.

When it has cooled, chop it up into bite size chunks and season.

Divide your salad between two large bowls (you should have enough left over for tomorrow's lunch, you lucky devil) and scatter your chicken pieces on top.

When the microwave pings, take out your stuffing and break it into little pieces. Pop them on top of your salad and whatever you do, make sure you lick the spoon.

That, my friend, is a vital step.

Drizzle over your homemade cranberry dressing and dive in totally guilt free.

Ridiculously delicious and totally acceptable in January, much like the the following joke:

What do you do with epileptic lettuce?

You make a seizure salad! 

Minted Pea Smash

Mashed potatoes regularly visit my day dreams around this time of year.

 

I'm not quite sure who invites them along, but I'm pretty certain that the bed of crunchy leaves outside my doorstep or the fleecy pullovers hanging in my wardrobe might have something to do with it.

 

My point is, as soon a it gets cold, all I want to do is curl up with a dollop of creamy mash and hibernate the winter away. The problem? Those pesky little calories doing a little snuggling of their own down in my bowl.

 

Some things in life are truly unfair. But never fear, young chef. I come bearing a winter warming alternative.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you my Minted Pea Smash.

It's low calorie, super delicious and easy peasy (no pun intended, I swear!) to knock up in a jiffy.

 

Serve it up as a mid-week dinner for two or put it on your dinner party menu. It's just as comforting as mash potato and it's looks a thousand times fancier. It's also a trillion (approx.) times better for you.

I served mine with piri piri roasted chicken and lemon mayo, but lamb cutlets or turkey would work fantastically. To make enough for two people, you'll need:

250g frozen peas

1 x fresh red chili, finely chopped

1 x large handful of fresh mint, roughly chopped

A squeeze of lemon juice

Salt and pepper to season

Boil your peas until they float to the top of your saucepan.

Drain them off and place in a big bowl. Now, grab your masher. Squash them about a bit so the peas pop and slightly mash. Don't go overboard here, you don't want to be left with bowl of soggy mush.

When you've got them to a good stage, add your chopped chili and mint. Give it a good mix and season to taste.

Just before you serve up, squeeze in a little lemon juice. The lemon gives the peas some zip zap zop and sets the chili off beautifully.

Plate up with your choice of meat and woolf it down like nobodies watching, totally guilt free.

Each serving rings in at around 130 calories, which is under half the amount in a serving of mashed potato made with semi skimmed milk. What's not to love?

Peaaaaaaaa-utiful.