I am a huge fan of chicken. I could eat chicken every single day. I come quite close to doing that. My husband on the other hand wishes I didn’t make so much chicken. Not that he doesn’t enjoy my cooking but he is really more of a red meat kind of guy. Filet Mignon, brats, other sausages, other steaks, etc. I don’t make any of that often. So I am always trying to find a new twist on chicken. Something he will like.  Or at least say he likes. Ha!

This is a new recipe I tried tonight and it was a hit with us both!

Coconut Chicken with Warm Honey Vinaigrette Salad.

I adapted this from Eat Yourself Skinny’s recipe. I made a few changes. I have a habit of doing that with recipes. Normally I post them on FaceBook but I have decided to try and switch that over here a bit.

You can check out the original recipe at the link above but my adaptation is below.

Chicken & Salad:

  • 1lb boneless skinless chicken breast. Cut into strips or squares or whatever shape you desire!
  • 7 Tbsp. unsweetened shredded coconut. I use Bob’s Redmill.
  • 1/2 cup whole grain breadcrumbs. I make my own. Super easy to do so.
  • 1/3 cup cage free brown egg whites. (that is a personal preference. Those are the eggs I buy so the ones I used for this recipe. Any egg whites will likely do)
  • Olive oil spray. I have a misto and used that.
  • 6 cups baby spinach
  • 1 cup chopped carrots
  • 1 small cucumber, sliced
  • 1 tomato chopped
Vinaigrette
  • 1 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 Tbsp. honey
  • 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
  • 2 tsp. whole grain dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 375

I first combined all the vinaigrette ingredients, whisked them, and set the bowl aside.

Combine the coconut and bread crumbs in a bowl.

Dip the chicken in the egg whites. Then coat/roll the chicken in the breadcrumb coconut mixture.

Place all the coated chicken strips on a cookie sheet. Mist with olive oil spray. I used a thin cut of chicken breasts so I cooked for about 13 minutes, then flipped the strips. Then I cooked for an additional 13 minutes. They were perfect. I would recommend cooking your chicken as long as it needs, depending on the cut.

While chicken is cooking, combine the salad ingredients in a bowl, spinach, carrots, cucumber, and tomato.

When chicken is done, briefly heat the vinaigrette in the microwave. I put it in for 15 seconds and that was enough. I left the salad in the bowl, the chicken on a platter, and the dressing in a small bowl. My husband and I each helped ourselves. We drizzled a small amount of the dressing over our chicken/salad combo. You truly do not need a lot of it.

 

Personally I served the salad with cantaloupe, it is so good right now, some whole grain Italian bread, and a dipping oil I prepared earlier in the week.

And VOILA!

Sorry no photos of the food on the plate but I also have a toddler to feed! I was trying to quick get these photos taken.

I thought it was a refreshing take on chicken. It was tasty and a tiny bit sweet. But not overly sweet. A great salad. I will be making this again and again. I tried convincing Jack to try a “nugget” but he refused. He refuses meat. Wont even try a nibble. Somehow he knows when something is meat without ever really eating it! Sigh, one day I think he will be begging me to make these as just chicken nuggets even.