Chicken and Kale Salad with Bacon-Fried Apples and Walnuts
If you are Paleo or dairy-free, you can leave out the feta cheese.
Ingredients
- SALAD:
- 8 slices center-cut bacon
- 2 medium sweet apples such as Honeycrisp Gala or Pink Lady, thinly sliced about an 1/8 of an inch thick
- 1 generous pinch of kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
- 6 cups loosely packed kale hard stems removed and leaves massaged and torn into smaller pieces
- 2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
- 1/2 cup feta cheese
- DRESSING:
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 pinch of kosher salt
- Freshly-cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- SALAD:
- Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crispy. Drain the bacon slices on a paper towel-lined plate and leave the bacon fat in the skillet.
- Add the apple slices and walnuts to the skillet. Cook over medium-high heat for five minutes, stirring frequently so the nuts don't burn. Add the kale leaves along with a generous pinch of kosher salt and a teaspoon dried thyme, stir, and cook for 2-3 minutes or until the kale is just starting to wilt. Transfer the salad to a large bowl. Add the shredded chicken and feta cheese.
- DRESSING:
- In a small bowl, whisk together one tablespoon honey, one tablespoon lemon juice, two tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1/4 cup olive oil and a pinch of salt until combined.
- Toss the dressing and the kale salad together. Season with black pepper, to taste.