It must be duly noted that we are coming down off of our daughter’s wedding, of which we prepared for, within 6 months and had a real shin-dig of – and – before leaving Saskatchewan, decided to list our home there, so “edited” for the 3 days directly following the wedding, to get the house & garage into a shape we were somewhat proud of. We have a serious offer already, so I guess you could say we succeeded in our efforts. The wedding, in & of itself, is for another blog. I am not in the right place to get all of my many moods & emotions down on paper about such a significant & beautiful day (& 6 months preceding) as that was. Nope, today, I am just pleased to sit at the keys & offer up a rare recipe, that although is a copycat from Earls restaurant, I can call my own, after much trial & error.

We have not had a moment’s rest since our wedding/house-listing marathon because we arrived back, to our beautiful Okanagan home, with company in tow. I am not complaining, exactly, just stating the facts. And the fact, in this very rare case, is that I am tired. And if Reg, the screaming extrovert, admits a need to be free of house guests, then the very real writing on the wall is that I am indeed in need of a bit of rest. It will come…

I am relaxed & rested, to some degree, by gathering, prepping & cooking for our visitors. Right at this given moment, however, even that has come up a wee bit tiring. So tonight, after yesterday’s delicious birthday event of grilled salmon & shrimp, cabbage salad, roasted broccoli & new potatoes with a finale of double chocolate layer cake – I told everyone, with no apology, that tonight would be salad. But that salad would be none other than the delicious Santa Fe Salad. I don’t think you will be disappointed in the recipe that follows:

Santa Fe Salad

Print Recipe

Notes

Dressing Ingredients:

1/4 C olive oil

the juice of 2 limes

the zest of 1 lime

1/4 C fresh mint

2 tbsp soy sauce

a pinch of salt & pepper

1 tsp cumin

1 tbsp peanut butter

2 tbsp agave nectar

2 cloves fresh garlic, minced

Place all ingredients in a blender & whirr until smooth & creamy - *Dressing can easily be doubled if you are cooking for a crowd*

Salad Ingredients:

3 romaine hearts, or 1 large head of romaine, rinsed, spun & torn

1/2 - 1 can of black beans, well drained (black beans are very hard to keep - when contained, they gain momentum in the aroma department!)

1 C frozen corn, thawed but not cooked

1/2 to 3/4 C crumbled feta

6 - 8 pitted dates, halved & sliced

2 tbsp chopped peanuts (optional)

a handful of tortilla chip salad toppers - I have used wonton salad toppers too

1 or 2 fresh avocados pitted & cubed

Grilled boneless, skinless chicken breasts brushed with olive oil & sprinkled with cajun seasoning. Grilling for appx 10 mins per side at a BBQ temp of about 350 (depending on thickness) seems to work for us. Bring in, let rest a few mins (if you can!) & slice into thin strips.

Method:

Toss the salad ingredients with dressing - be careful!! You may not need all the dressing. Refrigerate the remainder, in a sealed container, & make yourself another rendition of this salad later in the week - if you can wait that long…Serve in large salad bowls topped with the tortilla & a few strips of the grilled chicken. Noooow, eat up - even if you are pooped!! 🙂