It's a Wrap...Chicken & Strawberry Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

September gives me recipe whiplash!!

The temperatures start to drop, I happily cook my way down the path of pumpkins & apples, soups & stews...and then BAM!

Another 90-degree day.

The last thing I want to do is heat up my kitchen.

I really don't mind...it gives me a chance to prepare and finally share this recipe, because despite it being my go-to salad this summer I haven't put it on the blog yet.

My excuse for not blogging about this salad, given that I've made it so frequently:  

It's so quick and easy to prepare, it's something that I usually make on the fly, when I'm in a hurry to throw dinner together.  On those hectic nights the last thing I can be bothered with is stopping to snap pictures for the blog.  

I wasn't in a hurry as I was preparing it this time, however...just a little wiped out from the heat, hehe.

Today's Playlist

• "Black Math'...The White Stripes
• "Sins of My Youth"...Neon Trees
• "Jerk It Out"...Caesars
• "Is It Any Wonder"...Keane
• "Psycho"...The Sonics
• "Train In Vain"...The Clash
• "I'm Shakin'"...Jack White
• "Learn To Fly"...Foo Fighters

Chicken & Strawberry Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette (serves 6)

Printable Recipe

Vinaigrette ingredients:

• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt & pepper, to taste

Salad Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked chicken, bite-sized pieces
• 6 cups salad greens
• 2 cups sliced strawberries
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans
• 1/4 cup feta cheese crumbles
• balsamic vinaigrette, see recipe above (or use 1/2 cup of your favorite prepared vinaigrette)

Optional: Flour tortillas, for wraps

To make the vinaigrette:

Whisk vinaigrette ingredients together in a small bowl.  Set aside while you prepare your salad.

Gather your ingredients.

Wash and slice the strawberries, chop the lettuce, cut the chicken into bite-sized chunks, chop the pecans.

Place the salad greens, diced chicken and sliced strawberries into a large bowl.  Drizzle with the balsamic vinaigrette.

Toss to combine.  Sprinkle with the pecans and feta.

Or serve the pecans and feta on the side, so the family members (ahem) who do not like nuts or cheese will eat the salad without complaint, and those of us who do like nuts and cheese can add them to our heart's content.

And at this point I grabbed some tortillas and decided to make the salad into wraps.

Sometimes it's hard to convince Mr. Terrific that salad can be a satisfying dinner...present it in a wrap, however, and he's on board!

So I piled the salad into a wrap instead of a bowl, and added a sprinkle of feta and pecans.

Enjoy.