Blackened Chicken and Citrus Salad

The Winter Blues is a real thing and vitamin C helps with it, so grab some citrus and make this salad. It has a blackening seasoning on the chicken that is so good, you will want to add it to anything and everything. I love it on shrimp, salmon, tofu or even as a seasoning on crispy chickpeas. The citrus I chose was grapefruit, which I don’t normally like but it was perfect, some mandarin oranges, and a squeeze of lemon. Crunch comes from the carrots and the pistachios, creaminess from avocado, and a mix of greens to give you all the nutrients. You could prep the chicken and toppers and keep them in separate containers to mix it up fresh at your desk for lunch. This is already Whole30, low carb, gluten free, and dairy free, and if you want vegan, use that blackening seasoning on some firm tofu or crispy chickpeas for protein. It is simple, fresh, and delicious!

Blackened Chicken and Citrus Salad

• 1 pound chicken breasts, flattened to an even thickness

• 2 Tablespoons Blackening Seasoning, below

• Spring Salad Mix

• Cruciferous Crunch Mix

• Carrots, shredded or peeled into ribbons

• avocado, slices or chunks

• pistachios

• orange wedges

• grapefruit wedges

• juice of lemon

• sprinkle of salt

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

- Heat a pan to medium high heat and prep the chicken by sprinkling the Blackening Seasoning all over and rubbing it in. Add a little oil to the pan and sear the chicken, turning frequently until cooked through and 165 internally. Let rest then slice or cube.

- In a large bowl, mix the spring mix and the cruciferous crunch or other similar mix together. Add in the carrots, orange wedges, grapefruit, pistachios, and avocado. Add in the chicken and toss together. Squeeze lemon, drizzle with oil, and sprinkle with salt to finish it

Blackening Seasoning

• 2 tablespoons smoked paprika

• 1 tablespoon dried thyme

• 1 tablespoon garlic powder

• 1 tablespoon onion powder

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon pepper

• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne

• 1/4 teaspoon all spice

- Mix all together and store in a jar.

First get this amazing Blackening Seasoning together, you are going to want to use this on all the things, so good on salmon, shrimp, chicken, and even tofu!

Mix it up and grab your chicken. I like to put them into a storage bag and use my meat mallet to pound them into thin-ish thickness. If you don’t have a mallet, no worries, use a pan, rolling pin, a workout weight you haven’t used, whatevs.

Sprinkle that all over the chicken.

Sear them in a pan or grill them!

Throw all the rest of it into a bowl and devour! No dressing, just a little oil, squeeze of lemon and sprinkle of salt is all you need.