A quick post for the middle of the week, and oh my god it's savoury. AND healthy. What's going on??? I wouldn't normally post about a salad, but I felt compelled to share this one with you because it took me about 5 seconds to prepare and it was so tasty and pretty healthy too. I like to think of it as my 'leftovers salad', which is where I throw together whatever I have in my fridge in the hope that it resembles a meal. It's great for when you have leftover roast or BBQ chicken from dinner the night before.
There's obviously nothing mind blowing about the salad itself; just baby spinach, chicken and corn, but the dressing is good part. I always end up with leftover buttermilk from baking and other than making pancakes and scones, I don't have many uses for it. Buttermilk is kind of magical though. It's thick and creamy and anything that you bake with it turns out super moist. But it's low fat! And it works awesome in a salad dressing, making it a great replacement for those ultra fatty creamy dressings without any loss of flavour. As Tomred wisely said to me once, it's all about the dressing.
Chicken Salad with Buttermilk & Chive Dressing1 1/2 cups Shredded chicken breast (or whatever leftover meat, or tuna)
1 bunch/bag baby spinach (or whatever salad greens you prefer)
1 cup sweet corn kernels, cooked (fresh or frozen)
(Basically you can throw in whatever leftovers you like)
For the dressing:225ml buttermilk
2 tbsp freshly chopped chives
2 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp low fat mayonnaise
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
These instructions are so easy I feel silly: place all the ingredients for the dressing in a bowl and whisk to combine, adjust to taste if necessary. Place all the remaining salad ingredients in a large bowl and toss with dressing. Top with extra freshly cracked pepper. Enjoy!
Edit: OH I nearly forgot! It's my blog's 1st birthday today!! Yay! Happy Birthday little blog :) I think a cake is in order....
Oh buttermilk in a dressing? Wouldn't have thought of that!
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree, what is this savoury business :P hee hee though it does look very tasty mmmm
Wow, I've never really thought about using buttermilk as dressing - this is going to come in really handy for the bits of leftover buttermilk! The salad looks awesome.
ReplyDeleteHehe salad? This isn't like you! :P
ReplyDeleteNah joking, anything that's tasty and healthy has three thumbs up from me. Cute bowl too ;P
buttermilk in dressing? Very interesting! Must make this dressing with the leftover buttermilk from making buttermilk pancake. I always wonder what to do with the leftover. Great recipe.
ReplyDeleteSlurp-a-durp-durp.
ReplyDeleteSalad is nice in moderation...I didn't know buttermilk was low fat! Or is that relative to everything else...
This looks delicious. Recipes using leftovers are always a winner! I rarely post any cooking posts let alone savoury ones so you're doing better than me :)
ReplyDeleteIt's low fat too?!?! So you can actually have everything then?! It looks delicious Steph!
ReplyDeletetop class
ReplyDeleteThis dressing sounds wonderful. I would love to have a salad like just like this right now!
ReplyDeleteOmg! A salad! You've changed!!
ReplyDeleteHehe just kidding. The dressing does sound lovely :)
I've tried buttermilk dressing before but never made them but they have a lovely creaminess. Good to know that they're low fat too!
ReplyDeleteSTEPH MAKING A SALAD?
ReplyDeleteSTEPH EATING A SALAD???
im so used to your baking entries.. i read the ingredients looking for some sort of cake in this salad hehe
My god this salad looks really tasty... i love eating salads for dinner especially when its one that is satisfying makes you want more more more more.. ^_^
Seems like leftover buttermilk is a common problem. If only we could share cartons of buttermilk amongst ourselves! What a great way to use it up. I hate wasting things, especially food things - all that lost potential!
ReplyDeleteHAPPY BIRTHDAY LITTLE BLOG!!! A cake is TOTALLY in order, you owe it to yourself and your excellent blog!
Happy 1st blog birthday! Yes we need cake. A really really big one :)
ReplyDeleteFirst of all happy blog
ReplyDeletebirthday. I like your dressing. I don't think I have ever had buttermilk in a dressing before.
Happy bloggiversary Steph! Great way to use up leftover buttermilk... I never know what to do with it either and most of the time I end up throwing it out :( The salad looks great!
ReplyDeletehappy blogiversary dude! the buttermilk dressing sounds super tasty and mmm i love corn!
ReplyDeleteThat dressing looks tasty. This might help me in my quest to increase salad intake.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds absolutely delicious!
ReplyDeleteFFichiban - Me neither! I got the idea from a Le Cordon Bleu book. They know their stuff ;)
ReplyDeleteRose - It was my saviour! I hate wasting stuff but I always throw away leftover buttermilk. Thanks!
Karen @ Citrus and Candy - I know..I need a brownie, stat! Haha which one ;)
Ellie (Almost Bourdain) - I hate throwing out leftover cream and buttermilk :(
The Ninja - Hmm well I know it's low fat in comparison to cream...so I love to use it for scones!
Helen (Grab Your Fork) - I agree, I don't like to waste leftovers :) Oh but you don't need to!
Trissa - Haha of course! Thanks Trissa!
david - Thank you!
Stella - It's my new favourite dressing!
Betty @ The Hungry Girl - Hahaha! I'm not the same! Nahh I'm still a pig on the inside :P
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella - Welll...low fat compared to a creamy caesar dressing ;)
Leona - Hahaha you're so funny Leona :P A salad cake..now there's an idea!
Conor @ HoldtheBeef - Haha I love it, a buttermilk pool! I hate wasting things too! Aww thank youuu :)
Helen (Grab Your Fork) - Aww thanks Helen! Hehe any excuse for cake!
A cupcake or two - Thank you Kath!! You should try it sometime, it's lovely and creamy!
Jacq - Thank you!! I know, it's much better than wasting it :)
chocolatesuze - Thank you! I love corn toooo!
Mark @ Cafe Campana - Haha maybe! I'm not usually a salad person myself but this was enjoyable :)
Atrian - Thanks so much!
Happy birthday for your blog! The salad looked like a winner before you even got to the dressing. Isn't it always amazing how such simple things can sometimes turn out to be something really nice?
ReplyDeleteSimon - Thank you!! I think it's good to enjoy the simple things in life :D
ReplyDeleteJust made this salad for a quick dinner... SO tasty! This may be my new go-to salad!
ReplyDelete