Mandarin Chicken Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

This Mandarin chicken salad ups the ante of what a chicken salad can be. It’s piled high with sweet mandarin oranges, shredded chicken, avocado and crunchy toppings, and tossed with a zingy lemon vinaigrette. 

 Ingredients

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 
• 5 cups spinach
• 4 mandarin oranges peeled and separated
• 1 ripe avocado diced
• 1 cucumber sliced
• 2 green onions chopped
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds
• Sprinkle of black and white sesame seeds

Lemon Vinaigrette

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon honey or maple syrup
• 1-2 garlic cloves minced
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Mix the vinaigrette ingredients together; pour 3/4 of it into a baking dish with the chicken. Allow the chicken to marinate - ideally, marinate the chicken for a few hours in the refrigerator, but 30 minutes is fine.
2. Preheat oven to 425 F. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cooked through.
3. Shred the chicken using either a fork or a stand mixer. Then in a large mixing bowl, toss all the ingredients together. Drizzle the remaining lemon vinaigrette on top.

Servings: 4
Nutrition facts per serving: calories 315; protein 29 g; carbohydrates 21g; fat 14g; fiber 7 g