Kale Sweet Potato and Chicken Salad

This is one of my many "Salads as a Main Dish" recipe. The reason being is a meat is added. Most of the time, well all of the time it is chicken. The image shows more greens than just kale. This time I bought at Costco a bag of prepared Sweet Kale with 3 other greens included. Them being: broccoli, brussels sprouts and red cabbage. These greens are on the list of "Super Foods" for their high antioxidants that help fight against rapid aging and other disease.

This recipe contains 9% iron, 4% calcium, 70% Vitamin C and 10% Vitamin A based on a 2000 daily calorie intake. Now for the recipe.... 

Step 1:

Here is what you will need:
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced (1 inch squares)
3 tbsp. olive oil 
Salt and pepper
3/4 pound frozen breaded chicken tenders
1 cup Mango Chipotle dressing
1 bunch Tuscan kale, tough stems and ribs removed, thinly sliced (about 6 cups)
½ cup cashews, chopped

The Mango Chipotle dressing is homemade. I will show you a little later the recipe.

Step 2:

First preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl toss sweet potatoes with the olive oil, salt and pepper. 

Step 3:

On two rimmed baking sheets, arrange diced sweet potatoes on one sheet and frozen breaded chicken strips on the second rimmed baking sheet.

Put in the preheat oven and bake 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender and chicken is cooked through. Let cool to room temperature; then chop chicken into pieces.

If you don't want to use breaded chicken strips you can opt for non-breaded. If you choose to use fresh chicken breasts and bread the chicken yourself, you will need to increase the baking time. You will also have to bake the chicken and sweet potatoes separately. If not, you will over bake the potatoes and possibly burn them. Always cook fresh chicken to an internal degree of 165. 

Step 4:

While you are waiting for the chicken strips to cool, you can prepare the dressing. This is the simple Mango Chipotle dressing recipe:

Mango Chipotle Dressing

2 Mangoes, peeled, pitted (about 1 ½ to 2 cups)
4 garlic cloves, peeled
2 Chipotle Chili Peppers in adobo, wash peppers and de-seed *
½ cup Olive Oil
¼ cup Vinegar
3 - 4 tbsp. Lemon Juice
2 tbsp. Sugar
¼ tsp. Salt

Place mango flesh, garlic gloves and peppers into a food processor and puree. Next add oil, vinegar, lemon juice and processes until well incorporated, about 1 minute. Add sugar and salt process a few seconds.

Makes about 2 ½ cups

*if too spicy, use only 1 pepper

Step 5:

After the chicken and potatoes have cooled and you have chopped the chicken, place potatoes, chicken, and kale with dressing into a large salad bowl and mix together well and sprinkle with cashews. Plate and serve.

Here's a close-up image of some plated Kale Sweet Potato and Chicken Salad. We just don't eat food with our mouth. We also eat food with our sight. Just look at those colors in that plated salad. It also has a delectable aroma with the kale and that homemade Mango Choptle dressing. 

For more salads as a main meal visit Savor the Food and on the Recipes page hit the "More Recipes" link. Claim your FREE e-book while you are there.

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