This salad has a surprise ingredient: pasta!

Pasta isn’t a salad ingredient that you typically see here in the northeast. The only other time I’ve seen it was when I was in Minnesota last spring, and from what I can tell it’s a midwest thing. I kind of love it though! It adds a nice chewy component to the salad and bulks it up to make it more filling – in fact, that one little bowl was more than enough for me for dinner.

Besides the pasta, this salad is filled with little tastes of all sorts of good stuff like crispy bacon, seasoned chicken breast, and creamy gorgonzola cheese. It’s dressed with a super simple Sweet Italian vinaigrette.

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I first saw this salad on Our Table For Seven this past May, and I was so excited to be paired up with Erin for this month’s Secret Recipe Club so I could have an excuse to make it! Erin was actually assigned to cook something from my blog a few months ago (she made my Pink Lemonade Cookies) and we both joined #SundaySupper around the same time, so I already feel like I know her. It was fun to read through her blog in more depth and pick something to make (I almost made her Crockpot Sweet Pork before I circled back around to the salad.)

Back to that pasta though. You want to use something small and compact so that it’s nice and chewy, and cook it until its just past al dente so that it stays soft (cook it about a minute longer than normal.) Erin recommends Ditalini, but something like elbows would also work. I used some of the vineyard pasta that I got in last month’s Taste Trunk, and they were perfect (and delicious!)

Chicken Chopped Salad with Sweet Italian Dressing

Name: Chicken Chopped Salad with Sweet Italian Dressing
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 2 slices bbacon/b, chopped; 1boneless, skinless bchicken breast/b, diced; 1 tablespoonb Italian seasoning/b; 1 bag (9 ounces) bromaine lettuce with red cabbage and carrots/b, chopped; 2 bgreen onions,/b white and green parts chopped; 1 cup bsmall pasta/b, cooked and cooled; 4 ounces bgorgonzola crumbles/b; 1/4 cup bbalsamic vinegar/b; 2 bgarlic cloves/b, minced; 1 teaspoon bsugar/b; 1/2 teaspoon boregano/b; 2 tablespoons bextra virgin olive oil/b; 1/4 cup bwater/b

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

This hearty chopped salad is inspired by one at the Chicago-based restaurant, Portillo's. The recipe comes from Erin at [Our Table for Seven|http://www.ourtableforseven.com/2013/05/chicken-chopped-salad-with-sweet_26.html" target="_blank]. The sweet Italian dressing is much different than the types of dressing I typically use, but I found that the flavor grew on me. If you don't like sweet dressings though, omit the sugar for a flavorful balsamic vinaigrette.

Ingredients

2 slices [b]bacon[/b], chopped
1boneless, skinless [b]chicken breast[/b], diced
1 tablespoon[b] Italian seasoning[/b]
1 bag (9 ounces) [b]romaine lettuce with red cabbage and carrots[/b], chopped
2 [b]green onions,[/b] white and green parts chopped
1 cup [b]small pasta[/b], cooked and cooled
4 ounces [b]gorgonzola crumbles[/b]
1/4 cup [b]balsamic vinegar[/b]
2 [b]garlic cloves[/b], minced
1 teaspoon [b]sugar[/b]
1/2 teaspoon [b]oregano[/b]
2 tablespoons [b]extra virgin olive oil[/b]
1/4 cup [b]water[/b]

Instructions

Add the bacon to a cool pan; place on a burner set to medium. Cook the bacon until the fat renders and it crisps up – 5-7 minutes. Remove bacon and drain on a paper towel. Toss the chicken in Italian seasoning. Cook in rendered bacon grease until golden brown and cooked through – about 5 minutes. Drain on a paper towel.
Add the lettuce, green onions, pasta, gorgonzola, bacon, and chicken to a large salad bowl.
Add vinegar, garlic, sugar, and oregano to a blender or small food processor. Mix well. Slowly drizzle in the oil and water. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Toss the salad with half the dressing. Let each diner add additional dressing to taste.

Nutrition Information

Amount Per Serving Calories 377 Total Fat 22g Fiber 1g Protein 25.9g

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Comments

KirstinMarie says
08/26 at 9:47 pm

Yum. this looks awesome! Love your pics. Great choice

beanplant says
08/26 at 9:40 pm

This salad looks delicious! Great SRC Pick!

Lynn Huntley says
08/26 at 7:25 pm

Perfect salad on a hot day, like the one we are having here today in Northern WI~ Great SRC pick~ Lynn @ Turnips 2 Tangerines

Tara says
08/26 at 5:38 pm

Gorgeous salad! My husband would love this. Bacon, chicken, pasta, and gorgonzola!

Paula @ Vintage Kitchen says
08/26 at 5:10 pm

Adding bacon and gorgonzola to pasta salad is simply perfect! Great pick for today!

SallyBR says
08/26 at 4:09 pm

Wow, this salad has everything, and would be a complete meal for me, love it!

Great choice for your SRC participation this month…

Melissa says
08/26 at 1:06 pm

I love the combination of lettuce and pasta as the base for this salad. Great end-of-summer dinner idea! Happy reveal day 🙂

Erin- Table for 7 says
08/26 at 12:28 pm

Yay! I love that salad..so glad you enjoyed it 🙂 Happy Reveal Day!!

Janie says
08/26 at 12:00 pm

Yum! Can’t go wrong with salad – I eat them all the time for lunch 🙂 Happy reveal day!

@KarenBurnsBooth says
08/26 at 10:09 am

What a fabulous recipe, that’s my kind of salad and dressing. A great SRC pick and lovely photos too, Karen

Rebekah Rose Hills says
08/26 at 9:53 am

Yummy!! That totally looks like something I would really enjoy – great SRC choice!!

Ingredients

Instructions

Nutrition Information

Comments

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