I have really been in the mood for salads lately. I don’t know if it is the weather warming up, or the thought that bathing suit season is very quickly approaching. Whatever the reason, the salad cravings have been coming on strong. This pesto caprese salad is an easy one to throw together. What I love about this salad is that I can make the main part of it one day, and enjoy it for lunch for a few more days.
When you make this, I recommend cutting the chicken into cubes first so that it will cook more quickly. If you would rather throw it on the grill, that will definitely work as well. Make sure that you allow the chicken to cool a little before mixing it with the cheese and vegetables. If you don’t, it could cause the mozzarella to melt. I used jarred pesto for this salad, but homemade would have been even better. I can not wait to make this again the next time that I make fresh pesto. Enjoy!
Pesto Caprese Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 1/2 lb chicken breast cubed
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/3 tsp garlic powder
- 6 oz mozzarella “pearls”
- 25 salad tomatoes cut in half
- 1/2 red onion chopped
- 1/3 cup pesto store-bought or homemade
- 2 avocados sliced
- 8 tbsp balsamic vinagrette
- 8 cups 50/50 salad mix
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Season cubed chicken breast with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Cook the chicken in the skillet until it is cooked through. Transfer the chicken to a plate and put in the refrigerator to cool.
- Chop red onion, cut tomatoes in half and slice avocados. In a large mixing bowl combine: mozzarella pearls, tomatoes, red onion and pesto. Toss to coat cheese and vegetables with pesto. Remove chicken from the refrigerator and add to the bowl with the cheese and vegetables. Toss again to ensure that the chicken is coated with pesto.
- To build the salads: Get out four plates. Put two cups of 50/50 mix on each plate and put an equal amount of caprese mix on each. Place half of a sliced avocado on each plate and top each with balsamic vinaigrette. Enjoy!
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