Recipe: Peachy Grilled Chicken Salad with Pecan Vinaigrette

This is another recipe from what is rapidly becoming my favorite cookbook, Tupelo Honey Cafe Spirited Recipes From Asheville’s New South Kitchen. If you haven’t experienced dining at Tupelo Honey, you must. (Read Fort Mill SC Living’s post on Tupelo Honey Cafe here.) The food is southern, yet entirely modern. You’ll find traditional southern ingredients such as grits and sweet potatoes used in innovative ways. Likewise you’ll find traditional southern dishes made with unexpected ingredients.

As with most Restaurant Cookbooks, the recipes aren’t always written well for the home cook. This recipe and many others not only contains a boatload of ingredients, but is time-consuming to make. The peach fennel salsa however,as well as the Pecan Vinaigrette are well worth the effort. I’m not always a huge fan of fennel and it’s licorice-like taste, but it works amazingly well with the peaches, creating a salsa that’s unlike any I’ve tried before. The addition of pecans to the vinaigrette greatly heightens and richens the flavor and leaves me wondering why ground nuts aren’t more often added to salad dressings.

I changed the recipe slightly. It called for toasting the pecans in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. If you do this, they will be burnt to a crisp, leaving you with nothing but pecan dust. Pecans are way too costly to have to throw out the first batch.. In addition, I reduced the marination time for the chicken and altered slightly the ratio of ingredients in the salsa to more suit my taste.

Peachy Grilled Chicken Salad with Pecan Vinaigrette

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 cup Tupelo Honey Chicken Marinade
• 1 bag fresh salad greens
• 1 cup peach fennel salsa
• Pecan Vinaigrette

1. Marinate the chicken in the marinade for at least 2-4 hours.
2. Heat a cast iron skillet or a grill pan over medium-high heat. Remove chicken from marinade and discard marinade.
3. Cook chicken for 4-5 minutes on each side, or until no longer pink.
4. Let cool and then slice.
5. Place salad greens in a bowl and top with chicken and salsa. Drizzle with dressing and serve.

Honey Chicken Marinade

• 3/4 cup pineapple juice
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh ginger

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk well to combine.

Yield:1 cup

Peach Fennel Salsa

• 1/2 cup diced fresh fennel (discard the bulb, stalk, and tough outer layers)
• 1 1/2 cups peeled and diced peaches (about 3 peaches)
• 1/2 cup diced roasted red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup diced red onion
• 4 teaspoons roasted garlic oil
• pinch of sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1. Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl. (Best made at least 30 minutes in advance)

Roasted Garlic Oil

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 5 garlic cloves

1. Place oil and garlic in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium low heat for 10 minutes or so.

Pecan Vinaigrette

• 1/4 cup pecans
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 2 1/2 teaspoons whole grain mustard
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons tupelo honey
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1. Toast the pecans in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes or so, being careful not to burn them. Cool pecans and grind in a food processor until they resemble  cornmeal. Place in a small bowl.
2. Place the vinegar, garlic, both mustards, honey, sugar, salt, and pepper in the food processor. Process a few seconds to mix.
3. With machine running, slowly add both oils.
4. Stir in ground pecans.

Yield: 2 cups

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