I love salads for dinner, but in order for one to fly at my dinner table it has to 1. taste good (really good) and 2. be hearty and filling enough that my husband doesn’t go make a sandwich 20 minutes after we clear the table. This one fit the bill and has been making regular appearances at our house over the past couple of months. It’s a fun twist on cobb salad. (Like cobb salads? Check this one out) The bonus is, with the right prep it can require little to no cooking, and it’s also a healthy salad (Surprise! Many salads aren’t!) So I’ve also included nutritional info at the end. We actually have quite a few recipes with nutrition facts and you can find them all here.
Let’s Cook!
One thing I like about this recipe is that you make just enough dressing to use on the salad. Sometimes I go crazy with homemade dressings and have jars all over my fridge that I end up tossing out after a while. So it’s nice that this one gets used up in one meal! Just whisk or shake and you’re done.
Speaking of homemade dressings, this salad would also be awesome with this Creamy Lime-Cilantro Ranch, or this Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette, or even the dressing from this Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad.
Tear up some cold, crisp romaine and then we’ll top it with all kinds of yummy stuff.
I think the beans, the meat, and the avocado help make this feel like an actual meal by adding substance.
And then the Pico de Gallo, onions, bacon, and cheese, add tons of flavor.
You can toss everything together in one bowl, or style it more traditionally like the picture below. This is the actual serving size- not bad for under 300 calories, right??
Drizzle on the vinaigrette and you’ve got some serious yummy.
Southwestern Cobb Salad
Recipe from Cooking Light
For a quick no-cook meal, substitute diced rotisserie chicken or leftover turkey breast, use pre-cooked bacon you can just zap in the microwave, and you can even buy pico de gallo.
Vinaigrette:
3 Tbs white wine vinegar
1 tsp honey
3/4 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
2 tablespoons canola oil
Salad:
3 slices bacon,cooked and crumbled. I use pre-cooked bacon so it’s super quick
cooking spray
8 oz skinless, boneless turkey or chicken breast cut into 1/2 inch pieces*
1/4 tsp salt
8 cups torn romaine lettuce
1/2 C pico de gallo
1/2 C diced avocado
1/2 C (2 oz) crumbled queso fresco (feta makes a good sub, or shredded pepperjack)
1/4 C chopped green onions
1 (15oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
*note that nutritional information reflects turkey breast.
To prepare vinaigrette, combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk to combine, or place in a jar and shake. Set aside.
To prepare salad, heat a skillet to medium high heat. Spray with cooking spray. Sprinkle turkey or chicken with salt and add to pan. Saute until done, about 4 minutes.
Arrange 2 C lettuce on each of 4 plates and divide ingredients among them. If you want to be specific, each serving should have about: 2 teaspoons bacon, 5 tablespoons turkey or chicken, 2 tablespoons pico de gallo, 2 tablespoons avocado, 2 tablespoons queso fresco, 1 tablespoon onions, and about 1/3 cup beans.
Drizzle vinaigrette evenly over salads. Serves 4.
Nutrition Facts per serving:
calories: 293, fat: 13.6g, protein 22.4g, carbs: 19.9g, fiber: 6.6g
WW points: 6
Questions & Reviews
This salad is DELICIOUS!!! I don’t think I’ve ever over-eaten a salad, but I am having trouble leaving this in the fridge even though I’m totally full. Awesome!
Made this for dinner tonight since I had everything on hand. It was delicious! I didn’t have enough romaine, so I used half romaine half spinach. I also didn’t have queso fresco (and I’m pregnant, so not sure if I can have that), so we had a mixture of shredded monterey jack and cheddar. The dressing surprised me by how yummy it was! I can’t wait to eat this again, next time with some tortilla strips on top. 🙂
Hey! I just made my own pinto beans… from scratch! I don’t want to make black beans too… Would pinto taste ok?? (plus I don’t really like black beans..)
You’re not making beans here, you’re just opening up a can 🙂 If you like pinto beans, go for it.
Had this tonight! It was amazing! I love eating all of your salads for dinner…but this one is my new favorite!
Great simple salad. Full of flavor and color!
tam- use red wine vinegar, it will be great!
I don't have any white wine vinegar in my pantry, but still want to make this tonight. What would be an okay substitute? Red wine vinegar, white vinegar or apple cider??
Made this last night for dinner and it was a hit! I wish I still had avocado left and I'd definitely be eating it for lunch. Thanks for the great recipe (the dressing…fabulous!)
porter family–Ground red pepper is just another name for cayenne pepper. It should be super easy to find! 🙂
ground red pepper? i've never heard of that. could red pepper flakes be used or do i need to find it ground?
I love I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray. I use it on everything!
Made this for lunch yesterday, very filling and very yummy! My husband actually loved it!
Added diced sweet red pepper and corn… yummy!
I made a variation of this salad tonight… DELISH!!! We went meatless (no turkey, no bacon) but with the homemade dressing it was SO flavorful. You were right… the dressing was just right for one salad, but I'm going make a new batch, triple the recipe, and keep a jar in my fridge. Awesome, kickin' dressing.
My 10 year old asked if she could please have this salad for her school lunch tomorrow. Can't beat that! 🙂
This looks very good. I've been meaning to try some of your salad meals. I like that there is only enough dressing for the whole salad… that's part of the reason I haven't tried any of the others – afraid we wouldn't use up leftovers!
I'm trying to remember where I got those plates…I'm thinking they're from World Market? It's hard for to remember because I don't have a full set- I just bought a couple for food photos!
Sara … where did you get those cute rectangular plates? That salad looks so colorful and too beautiful to eat 🙂
that looks SO yummy! Too bad I can't eat it on the HCG diet. LOL! Just wondering since you are promoting the HCG drops, could you come up with some recipes for those on the diet? I would LOVE THAT!!
This sounds great! I love salads for dinner in the summer!
Mmmm! Looks great! I'm always looking for lighter meals for these smoldering hot days…this would be perfect! Adding it to the menu! 🙂