Chopped Summer Salad

Once again, my goal tonight was to start with a recipe I liked, and make it my own. We began with this recipe from Martha Stewart for Arugula Salad with Grilled Chicken, Corn, Tomatoes, and Blue Cheese. It finally really feels like summer now and this salad hit all the right notes.

When I'd told Ken I was planning to make this salad he asked if it had blue cheese dressing or just blue cheese. Oooh...blue cheese dressing you say? I decided to search Food Network.com for a light blue cheese dressing - nothing with heavy cream or the like - and stopped on this delicious sounding Buttermilk Blue Cheese Dressing. The dressing was more like a vinegar-based dressing than a creamy dressing, but it has that same flavor and tang of the more generic type.

I made a few additional substitutions. Chopped rotisserie chicken replaced the grilled for mostly convenience's sake. The cranberries were added at the very last minute after the avocado I bought was totally rotten. Sadly, my local store was barren tonight - perhaps due to the holiday. But June means farmer's markets in New England, finally!


It's a quite tasty salad, with lots of different flavors running through it. I would have loved the avocado if it had made it to the bowl - definitely include it. I'm also a huge fan of fresh corn in salads. It's like a sweet little burst.


Chopped Summer Salad with Buttermilk Blue Cheese Dressing
Based on Arugula Salad with Grilled Chicken, Corn, Tomatoes, and Blue Cheese by Martha Stewart

Serves 2-3

4 cups arugula or spring mixed greens
3 plum tomatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 ears fresh corn, kernels sliced off
1 avocado, cut into cubes
1/2 cup dried cranberries
2 cups cubed rotisserie chicken or 2 roasted chicken breasts, cubed
Buttermilk Blue Cheese Dressing (Tyler Florence's recipe)

Add first six ingredients into a large bowl and mix lightly. Toss with dressing, a few tablespoons at a time.