Beautiful Bones: Santa Fe Chicken Salad

posted in beans and legumes on May 13, 2008

Susan the FoodBlogga has one of my favorite blogs. Everything is always so fresh, simple, and beautiful. When I saw she was hosting a blog event, Beautiful Bones, I knew I wanted to participate. The event asks bloggers to make a calcium-rich dish to bring awareness to osteoporosis.

I was actually planning on thinking something up and making it next week for the event, since I already had my dinners planned out for the week. But, as I was reviewing the event on Susan’s blog (and also inputting my meal into SparkPeople), I realized the chicken salad I was making was mighty high in calcium. Cheese? Check. Sour cream? Check. Avocado? Check. Black beans? Check. Lime? Check. Corn tortillas? Check. Tomatoes? Check. Oregano? Check. Tequila? Okay, that’s not high in calcium but it’s good to have.

When all is said, calculated, eaten and done for, this salad provides you with a shade under 40% of the recommended calcium intake for the day. w00t! It’s good to know I am naturally planning calcium rich foods without really thinking about it.

I suppose this is what is called a “Santa Fe Chicken Salad.” Honestly, I have never had one of these concoctions before in a restaurant, but that goes without reason. I love all the components in this salad and it’s a nice twist on a boring ol’ grilled chicken salad. I haven’t calculated the nutritional value for this (other than the chicken itself) because it will really vary based on whether you use full fat cheese, sour cream, ranch, etc. If you don’t, this is definitely a light, healthy and filling salad. Take that, osteoporosis!

Santa Fe Chicken Salad
Serves 2

Tequila Lime Chicken
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 4.5 oz. each)
1 lime, zested and juiced
2 Tbsp. Tequila
2 Tbsp. orange juice
2 tsp. canola oil
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. chili powder
2 cloves garlic, smashed
salt and pepper

Combine the lime juice and zest, tequila, orange juice, canola oil, spices and garlic and whisk together. Pour into a dish or resealable bag along with the chicken and refrigerate for 30 minutes – 2 hours (any longer and the acid in the citrus could start to “cook” the chicken).

Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper and then grill or saute the chicken, basting with the marinade, until cooked through (about 4-5 minutes per side).

Nutritional information per piece, if consuming all marinade (which, you probably won’t): Calories: 225 / Fat: 7g / Carbs: 4g / Protein: 29g

Dressing
1/4 cup salsa
2 heaping Tbsp. sour cream
2 Tbsp. ranch dressing
hot sauce (optional)

Combine all ingredients (and a few dashes of hot sauce, if you’d like) and refrigerate as you make the rest of the salad.

Salad
3-4 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
1 large tomato, diced
1/2 avocado, diced
1/3 cup black beans, drained/rinsed
1/3 cup corn
1/3 cup cheddar jack cheese
2 corn tortillas
cooking spray

Cut the corn tortillas into squares and spray with oil. Bake at 350 in your oven (or toaster oven, as I like to use for these small jobs) until crispy.

Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Toss with the dressing and then stir in the crispy corn tortillas. Top with chicken.