Last year I posted my summer salad. Had no idea what a popular recipe it would become! In that light I guess it only makes sense for me to post an autumn salad as well. I labeled this one: “My new best salad” because I’m totally smitten with it. Not sure what that says about me. Maybe something about my unhealthy relationship with food? Hush. It was a rhetoric question.

My salad combines crispy, nutty and fresh salad leaves with sweet carrots, pungent red onion, fresh apple, creamy avocado and walnuts with thinly sliced smoked chicken breast to create the perfect balance of flavors. I topped it off with my all time favorite creamy ranch-style dressing.

If you’re anything like me, you’ll want to eat this one over and over. Serve it on the side or as an appetizer during Thanksgiving or Christmas, or throw in some rustic whole wheat bread for a seriously amazing lunch or dinner.


Ingredients:

Salad:

smoked chicken breast
salad leaves or lettuce
granny smith apple (or pear)
fresh lemon juice
walnuts
red onion
avocado
carrot

Optional:  crispy bacon


Ranch-style Dressing:

4 tbsp mayonnaise
4 tbsp yoghurt
1 tbsp apple juice
1/2 tsp grated onion (or onion powder)
1/2 garlic clove
flat-leaf parsley
1/3 lemon
pepper
salt


Directions:

Combine the mayonnaise (the real deal, Hellmann’s) with the yoghurt. Sure you could use sour cream instead, but give yoghurt a try sometime. Much more diet friendly and it tastes just as good.

Grate a small piece of onion. Don’t overdo it, use only half a tsp or so. Alternately you could use onion powder as well but this really adds flavor and zing. And grate half a garlic clove.

Add the apple juice, a splash of fresh lemon juice and a good pinch of salt and pepper.

Finely mince a handful of flat-leaf parsley.

Combine it all, stir well and check the seasoning. Refrigerate until you need it.

I usually grab a big bag of mixed salad leaves. Feel free to use lettuce instead.

Grate the carrot and thinly slice the red onion.

My salads almost always contain avocado. I love avocado. Avocado and bacon are a match made in heaven, so feel free to add a few bacon strips to the salad.

Granny smith apples work so well in this salad. But you can easily do this with pear as well, it creates a just as tasty but slightly different dimension.

Squeeze a little lemon juice over the apple and avocado to prevent it from turning brown. Break the walnuts in half or chop them up.

Thinly slice the smoked chicken breast.

You can make one big salad but I kinda like making individual portions in cute bowls. I serve the dressing on the side—not everyone likes dressing—but you could drizzle some on top or toss the salad leaves with the dressing.

 
Now this salad is really all that and a bag of Doritos. Take my word for it.