The High-Protein Salad You’ll Actually Crave
A Note from Teri
I love my Sunday Salad! Date Night at Farina’s Supper Club inspired my original viral version of this sumptuous salad several years ago, and it was so amazing that it ignited quite a Sunday Salad kick. This week, I’ve created a high protein version of my Sunday Salad, because these days, I’m all about protein. I was so thrilled this salad has 49 grams of protein per person!
Recently, in working with a nutritionist, she set a goal of 140 grams of protein per day for me, and it’s been quite a journey figuring it out. I do my best to make food fun for myself, and counting the grams every day is kind of like a game! I quite enjoy getting my 140 grams of protein, and this salad is one of the most fabulous ways to do it. When you make a high protein Sunday Salad, these are the five essential elements:
The dressing: For the dressing, our idea is genius. We made my Green Goddess with cottage cheese, which increased the protein substantially. I’ve discovered that when trying to incorporate more protein, cottage cheese is your best friend. I’m a superfan of Good Culture, and I’m a big believer in whole milk or 4%.
The cheese: perfect little squares of manchego cheese create the ideal creamy cheesiness.
The chicken: my Sizzling Everyday Roasted Chicken Breast recipe cut into squares is absolutely perfect in this salad. Feel free to use rotisserie chicken, or raise the amount.
The beans: edamame is a fun, high protein addition.
The quinoa: preparing it with bone broth instead of water adds both extra protein and extra deliciousness. We’ve used quinoa in salads before, but as we created this one, we realized we never add quite enough. With all the greens and the creamy dressing, the extra quinoa is so delightful. By the way, it’s essential to rinse quinoa before making it.
Feel free to substitute whatever vegetables you prefer. You could add green beans, for example. Or you could leave out the vegetables entirely and just do protein.
I just love talking about my many Sunday Salads! After creating my first one, I was inspired to do a vegan version for my son (which was so good that we served it for Christmas dinner), a Whole30 version, a summer version, and more recently, when my high protein journey began, this high protein version.
A classic Sunday Salad typically features a combination of fresh greens, vegetables, and a flavorful dressing. Common ingredients include lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, and a tangy dressing like vinaigrette or creamy Italian. Some versions might also include cheese, olives, and other additions like pepperoncini or celery. If you'll be in Michiana, it’s so worth finding Farina’s Supper Club. Pro tip: It’s an absolute must to get a seat at the bar and enjoy a fabulous dinner. They have the greatest Sunday Salad–it’s simply a must do. Cheers!
I brought this salad to Roy, who loves all my salads, and he said, “This is the most delicious salad you’ve ever made!” I told him he’d be surprised to find out what’s in the dressing (because he’s not a cottage cheese person). By the way, when you blend cottage cheese in a mini food processor, it tastes sweeter! We don’t understand why.
On a personal note, people often ask what we can do to support Nocrumbsleft, and subscribing to my Substack is the answer. It’s priced so reasonably at $48 a year, and in turn, you receive weekly cookbook-quality recipes, grocery lists, exclusive step by step stories, resources, tips, and more fabulousness.
Ingredients
For the dressing:
1 cup whole or 4% cottage cheese
¼ cup roughly chopped chives
¼ cup roughly chopped basil
¼ cup roughly chopped parsley
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons minced shallots
2 garlic cloves, pressed or grated
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
For the salad:
1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups chicken broth or bone broth for more protein
10 ounces salad greens of your choice; we used baby romaine
2 ounces (about 2 handfuls) arugula
Kosher salt
¾ pound cubed chicken breast, we used Sizzling Everyday Roast Chicken Breast but you can also use leftover rotisserie chicken
One 6-ounce can California green olives, drained and halved
¾ cup radicchio, shredded
¾ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
¾ cup radishes, trimmed and quartered
⅔ cup edamame beans
½ cup sliced cucumber
½ cup diced red bell pepper
1 avocado, sliced
4 ounces manchego cheese, cut into small cubes
¼ cup Marinated Red Onions
Directions
Make the dressing. Blend the cottage cheese, chives, basil, parsley, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, shallots, garlic, pinch of salt, and pinch of pepper in a jar with an immersion blender to combine, or use a full sized blender. Add 1/4 cup of water and blend until emulsified. Close the jar with a lid and set aside in the refrigerator.
Make the quinoa. Place the quinoa in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse very well. Add the rinsed quinoa and chicken broth to a medium pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover the pot, lower the heat to low, and continue cooking for 15-20 minutes or according to package directions. (Because I like my quinoa a little drier, I cook the quinoa for an additional 10 minutes.) Turn the heat off when the quinoa has finished cooking and let sit, covered, for 5 minutes.
Assemble the salad. Place the greens and arugula in a large serving bowl and season with salt. Add the quinoa, chicken, green olives, radicchio, cherry tomatoes, radishes, edamame, cucumber, bell pepper, avocado, manchego, and Marinated Red Onions. Drizzle with ½ cup of dressing and toss well. Divide the salad among four plates or large bowls. Serve with the remaining dressing at the table and enjoy!
Follow Along with Teri
Printable Grocery List and Recipe
We have new recipes on my blog every single week, so click HERE to check them out! We have many recipes that would be wonderful for Mother’s Day: a Tuna Niçoise Salad, a Shrimp Louie Salad and from the Nocrumbsleft cookbook, Teri’s Epic Salad with Wasabi-Lime Dressing on pages 244 and 247.
The Last Crumb
Recently a follower sent me her vinegar, Vivo. Now, people send me a lot of things, and while I am truly grateful, I don't necessarily share most of them. This vinegar is made with Lambrusco grapes, and it’s truly magnificent. I’ve been loving it on everything.
xoxo,
Where is the crispy rice sushi recipe?
Love everything from Teri😍😋