Butter Lettuce, Chicken and Cherry Salad

This has become my go to salad this summer.  My wonderful friend Candace made it for us for lunch we we were finally able to visit her new home while visiting Orange County earlier this summer.  She is so much better than me about reading a new recipe in a magazine and then making it!  It was so yummy I dug out the magazine and bought the ingredients at our local produce market and made it the night we arrived home.  I can imagine it in the winter with dried cherries and without the chicken with goat cheese as a side salad, the dressing really helps make this tasty.

Serves 4

Dressing Ingredients:

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

3 Tablespoons Dijon Mustard

3 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill

2 Tablespoons honey  

1 garlic clove, minced 

1/4 cup olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

Whisk first 5 ingredients together, gradually whisk in oil.  Season with salt and pepper.

Salad Ingredients:  ( I halved these, using one head of lettuce and about 1 cup of cherries for two of us)

4 chicken thighs, grilled

4 thick slices of rustic bread, torn (or cut) into 3/4 inch pieces

1 pound fresh cherries, stemmed, pitted and lightly crushed

3 heads of butter lettuce, cored and torn into pieces 

4 radishes 

1 tablespoon chives

Directions:

Spray bread with Pam and toast in oven to make croutons.

Remove chicken skin and bone, tear into pieces.  Place chicken in large bowl and cherries, lettuce, radishes and chives.  Drizzle with vinaigrette and toss.  Sprinkle with croutons and chives.  

Printable Recipe

This recipe is adapted with fat reduced from Epicurious