Some days, I just crave a big bowl of fresh salad mixed with some hearty protein and salad dressing. This week, I had one of those days where I really wanted a Cobb salad with my favorite salad dressing, honey mustard dressing. I didn’t eat Cobb salads a lot growing up. In fact, my favorite salad growing up was usually the classic chicken Caesar salad, which I almost always ordered whenever I wanted a salad at a restaurant. Occasionally, I would order a Cobb salad when I want a heartier, more filling salad. Cobb salads are packed with tons of protein and fresh vegetables. Kevin typically doesn’t crave salads, but this salad had everything he wanted in a salad. It has crispy grilled chicken, smoky bacon, hearty hard-boiled eggs, creamy avocado, crunchy onions, and sweet and tangy tomatoes. All of these hearty ingredients are arranged over a bed of salad greens. Traditional Cobb salad also has Roquefort cheese, but I decided to omit the cheese since Kevin isn’t a huge fan of blue cheese tossed into his salad. Cobb salads are a good compromise for both Kevin and I when it comes to a dinner both of us would want to eat. He gets to have a variety of meats. I get to mix in some healthy greens. The salad is protein packed and will keep you fueled and full for hours. I’ve heard people say we tend to eat with our eyes. There must be some truth in the saying because I often devour foods with many colors, textures, and flavor profiles. This Cobb salad has all of the above. It has almost all of the colors of the rainbow. There are many textures throughout the salad including crispy, crunchy, and soft. Best of all, the different ingredients add a complex flavor profile to the salad. The Cobb salad definitely makes for a salad which appeals to different taste buds. We both enjoyed the salad very much served with a side of chai milk tea with bubbles.
Cobb Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing:
For the Cobb salad:
· 3 cups mixed salad greens, loosely packed
· 3 large eggs
· 8 slices of bacon, diced
· 2 thinly sliced chicken breasts
· ½ teaspoon kosher salt
· ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
· 1 avocado, diced
· ½ red onion, diced
· 8-10 cherry tomatoes, quartered
For the honey mustard:
· 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
· ½ tablespoon honey
· 2 tablespoons soybean oil
Directions:
1) On a large plate, loosely arrange the mixed salad greens. Set aside.
2) To make the hard-boiled eggs, bring a pot of cold water to a boil with the eggs in the pot. Once the water starts to boil, turn off the heat and keep the pot covered. Let the eggs stand for 2 minutes. Then, run the eggs under cold water. Carefully peel the shells off the eggs. Cut the eggs into small pieces. Arrange the diced eggs in a strip down the center of the salad.
3) Heat a skillet on medium heat, add the diced bacon. Cook the bacon until crispy, about 5 minutes. Remove the cooked bacon to a plate. Add the chicken breasts to the skillet. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Cook the chicken breasts for 2-3 minutes on each side until the chicken breasts are golden brown and crispy on both sides. Let the chicken breasts rest for 10 minutes before cutting the chicken breasts into cubes.
4) To arrange the rest of the salad, arrange the diced avocado in a strip to the right of the hard-boiled eggs. Add the crispy diced bacon in a strip to the right of the diced avocado. Add the cubed chicken in a strip to the right of the crispy bacon. Add the diced red onion to the left of the hard-boiled eggs. Add the quartered tomatoes to the left of the diced red onion.
5) To make the honey mustard dressing, combine the Dijon mustard, honey, and soybean oil in a bowl. Stir to combine all ingredients. Serve the dressing on the side or drizzled on top of the salad.
Takeaways: This salad can easily be customized to suit your taste. If you prefer cheese in your salad, feel free to add Roquefort cheese or any other blue cheese of your choice. You can also serve this salad with any salad dressing of your choice. Feel free to mix and match any ingredients of your choice. For other salad ideas, check out my Asian chicken salad with peanut dressing or berry chicken salad with lemon Dijon dressing.