Chicken and Strawberry Salad

The weather is warming up, I’ve actually seen some blue skies in the last two weeks and my kids are whining about having to wear their coats after school. I’m beginning to think that spring really is on its way! The arrival of spring means that I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of my favorite fruit in my grocer’s produce section. Now don’t get me wrong, I like all fruits and most veggies (sorry, but okra and eggplant are deal breakers and should not be considered edible, let alone veggies,  in my book). So which one can I possibly single out as my favorite? Just in case you haven’t already guessed by the picture above and the title of this post, strawberries of course!!

Strawberries are seriously one of the best foods on the face of the planet. They taste super yummy,  they are low on both the glycemic index and the glycemic load charts, they have vitamin C, vitamin K (speak to your doctor about including strawberries in your diet, and how many you can have,  if he/she has placed you on a prescription blood thinner such as  Coumadin, because vitamin K aids in clotting of the blood), they also contain folic acid, potassium, riboflavin, vitamin B5, vitamin B6, copper, magnesium, phytonutrients, antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids. They are a gold mine of good stuff, and below, I have typed out one of my favorite salad recipes that uses all kinds of other good things for you too! (But my favorite part is still the strawberries!)

Chicken and Berry Salad

Chicken Breasts, grilled and sliced (1 per person)

Strawberries, washed and sliced (1/2 cup per person)

Dried cranberries (1/2 cup)

Reduced Fat Feta Cheese (1/2 – 3/4 cup)

1 Red Onion, sliced thinly

Chopped pecans (1/2 cup)

Spinach (3 cups per person)

Toss all ingredients together in a large salad bowl. (I like this salad just the way it is, but if you’re a person that can’t even begin to think about eating salad without dressing, you can  serve it with a low fat raspberry vinaigrette.) Enjoy!