Chicken Nicoise Salad

Nicoise salad is spruced up in this recipe with a yummy herb vinaigrette.  Serving it with simple grilled chicken is also an affordable and easy protein choice.

 Ingredients

• 1 bag (8 oz) spring mix, arugula, or baby kale
• 4 (5-6 oz) boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 pound fingerling potatoes or baby potatoes, diced into ½ inch pieces
• 2 cups green beans, cut into 2 inch long pieces
• 1 heaping cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• ½ cup large pitted black olives, halved
• ¼ cup large capers, drained
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 2 TBSP fresh lemon juice
• 2 TBSP champagne or white wine vinegar
• 2 TBSP fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 2 tsp stone ground mustard
• 1 tsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 1 tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
• 1 tsp honey
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp fresh cracked pepper
• *Extra olive oil, salt and pepper for seasoning

Preparation

• Lay chicken breasts on a cutting board, cover with plastic wrap and pound to ½ inch thickness with a meat mallet. Toss the chicken breasts with a small amount of olive oil, salt and pepper.  Heat grill or grill pan to medium high and grill for about 5 minutes per side, until cooked through.  Let cool before slicing.
• In a small bowl whisk together the olive oil, along with all the ingredients listed below “olive oil” on the ingredients list.
• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Toss potatoes with 1 TBSP of the dressing, spread onto a roasting sheet and roast 20 minutes, tossing once after 10 minutes.
• Immediately toss the potatoes with another 1 TBSP dressing once removed from the oven.
• In a small bowl toss the tomatoes, olives, and capers with 1 TBSP of the dressing.
• Steam the green beans in a small pot or in the microwave for 2 minutes, so they still have some crunch to them.
• Toss the lettuce with remaining 1 TBSP of dressing. Arrange the chicken slices, potatoes, green beans and tomato mixture over the greens.