Strawberry Chicken Salad with Bacon and Avocado has everything you want in a great salad recipe!
The 4th of July summer holiday is over and now it’s time to get back on the eating-healthy bandwagon. Are you with me?!! I don’t know about you, but it’s felt like vacation every day for the last several weeks. And vacation for me means eating.. a lot… like whatever I want whenever I want. We’ve had our fun, and now it’s time to lighten thing up a bit. I announced this to my husband last night and then made him eat this Strawberry Chicken Salad for dinner.
It’s not like eating this salad for dinner is torture or anything. There’s a good amount of roasted chicken in there, sugared almonds, avocado and BACON.
I also sneak in some cucumber, yellow bell pepper, blue cheese and plenty of fresh strawberries.
The dressing is my GO-TO homemade vinaigrette: Strawberry Balsamic. Simple.
This Strawberry Chicken Salad recipe serves up 4 to 6 side dish salads, but if you’re eating it as a main dish salad and you’re really hungry, you may wish to just split the big bowl with someone else in your family (or halve the recipe). As for my husband- the guy who is never, ever excited about eating salad for dinner- he is delighted with this one, and I hear zero griping when I serve it. Praise, in fact, all-around. We both love it, and can eat the entire bowl between the two of us!
Here are a few more salads featuring strawberries that you might like to try:
- Strawberry Caesar Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Salad
- Triple Berry Salad with Sugared Almonds
- Strawberry- Avocado Salad with Balsamic Chicken
- Strawberry- Cucumber Salad
- Kiwi- Berry Salad with Raspberry Poppy Seed Dressing
- Strawberry- Melon Salad with Watermelon Vinaigrette
- Strawberry, Pistachio, Feta Cheese and Basil Salad
Strawberry Chicken Salad with Bacon and Avocado
Ingredients
SUGARED ALMONDS:
- 1/3 cup slivered almonds
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- dash of cayenne pepper, if desired
VINAIGRETTE:
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1½ tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon strawberry jam (use less if you don't like it so sweet)
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
SALAD:
- 4 to 5 cups mixed greens (just measure by the handful)
- 1½ cups chopped cooked chicken
- 1½ cups chopped fresh strawberries
- 3/4 cup chopped cucumber
- 1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
- 1 large avocado, diced
- 5 slices bacon, cooked until crisp (then crumbled)
- 1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese, feta cheese or goat cheese
Instructions
MAKE THE SUGARED ALMONDS:
- In a skillet, heat to medium and add the sugar. Let it start to melt, and then add the almonds. Stir until toasted and coated with the melted sugar. Add a sprinkle of cayenne pepper, if desired. Remove almonds to a cutting board or plate and let them cool. Then break the almonds apart.
MAKE THE VINAIGRETTE:
- Add all vinaigrette ingredients to a shaker jar. Shake to combine and set aside while you prepare the salad.
ASSEMBLE THE SALAD:
- In a large bowl, add the greens. Top with the rest of the ingredients, and toss with the vinaigrette. Top with the sugared almonds. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I could definitely serve this as a summer meal with no complaints from my husband. All the chicken, bacon and avocado make such a light salad a little more hearty. And the strawberry vinaigrette sounds delightful!
I’m back from vacation and on the healthy eating kick again… must give the bacon/strawberry combo a try stat!
I vacation like you do. I definitely need this salad.
Ohhh, I want, I want!
So pretty and such awesome summer flavors. I love everything about this salad. It sounds delicious!
You and I are on the same wave length today! I shared a very similar salad, but I love your addition of bacon, sounds perfect!
This is my favorite kind of salad. Fruit, nuts, cheese, bacon, avocado… I could eat this every day.
oh, that sounds wonderful! And I happen to already have everything on hand!
Bacon and strawberries… in a salad?! Totally in love with this simple salad Lori 🙂
Gorgeous and tasty salad with all of my favorite ingredients, Lori! Thanks for sharing!