Chicken & Veggie Salad

   Good Monday to ya! That's what my Mom says when she does her weekly Monday phone call. Well, actually, it's been a little patchy lately with summer being upon us, and schedules being off, but still, none the less, good Monday to ya!  :)  
   
   I have a fantastic, simple, and versatile recipe for today! And it's loaded with veggies, good fats, & some chicken! What more could you want to recover from a summer weekend! Whomp whomp...  :)      
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Chicken & Veggie Salad
 
Ingredients:

For the dressing:

• 2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil, or avocado oil, or try walnut oil for a delightful treat!
• 3 Tbsp fresh or bottled lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp Vinegar (apple cider vinegar is great, but a white wine, or balsamic vinegar would be good too-just remember that a balsamic would make the salad darker)
• 1 Tbsp Maple Syrup
• 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• Pinch o' salt, and a dash of pepper
• Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)

For the Salad:

• 4 Cups chopped or diced veggies--This can be a collection of any and every vegetable you love to eat raw! Think bright colours though to make the salad look it's best! :)   I generally use: peppers (red, orange, and yellow), cucumber, tomato, a handful of coleslaw mix (which is just pre-shredded cabbage), and onions of any kind! I had broccoli on hand for this batch, so I tossed that in too! I also often add celery or chopped carrots 
• 1 Cup cooked and diced chicken

Method:

1. In a large bowl, add the ingredients for the dressing, and whisk these ingredients together until they are well combined. Stick your finger in there and taste it. Too sweet? Add a pinch more pepper or cayenne. Too sour? Add a drop more maple syrup.
2. Add in the vegetables and chicken, and use two large wooden spoons or spatulas to toss the salad. Placing the dressing in the bottom gives you the best chance at completely covering all the contents of the salad in the dressing
3. You can eat this right away, or put into the fridge for later. If it has a few hours to sit, the flavours do soak into all the veggies better, but it tastes great right away too, so fear not! 

   So simple, right? I told you so! I will sometimes just eat this beast of a salad as my dinner! Other times I'll divide it into 2, or 3 or 4 and use it to top a leafy salad for a few days. The choice is up to you! You could also make it to bring to a summer pot-luck! I always appreciate seeing a healthy option at a get-together! 
   
    Well, I hope this inspires you to make yourself a happy, healthy salad this week! Why I describe it as happy is slightly mysterious, but I love salad, and it makes me happy to prepare it, and devour it, so, it's happy to me! 
   
​    Hope you had a great Monday; I had a lazy (x 10!) day-I did workout in the afternoon, but the rest of the day, well, I never got out of my p.j's except for that workout, so let that be your guide to my inspired day! :)