Chicken Salad w Tomatoes, Mozzarella, & Basil Vinaigrette

Couldn't think of a great name for this salad, but you get the point!  I found this basil vinaigrette from Simply Recipes via Pinterest and instantly wanted to make a salad!  I immediately thought it would be so good drizzled over a caprese salad.  But since I was trying to make this into a dinner salad, I used the caprese inspiration over lettuce!  This is what I originally served with the Roasted Garlic Bread.  The dressing was great and the salad was super yummy and refreshing for a weeknight meal!

Basil Vinaigrette

makes about 1 cup

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 shallot, chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 cup roughly chopped basil leaves

1/4 cup white wine vinegar (I didn't have so I used balsamic)

3/4 cup olive oil

Method:

1 Place the salt, sugar, mustard, shallot and basil in a blender or food processor. Pulse several times to combine. Scrape the sides of the blender down with a spatula. Add the vinegar and pulse again.
2 Turn the blender on low and take off the cap in the center of the blender’s lid. Slowly pour in the olive oil. It may sputter a little out of the open cap, so hold you hand over it to minimize splashing.
3 When the olive oil is incorporated, turn off the blender and scrape the sides down one more time. Cover and purée everything for 1-2 minutes.

Chicken Salad w Tomatoes, Mozzarella, & Basil Vinaigrette
serves two
Ingredients:

6 cups spring mix lettuce

2 chicken breasts

seasoning for chicken breasts (I use sugar, S&P, rosemary, garlic, & italian seasonings)

3 roma tomatoes, diced

4 oz fresh mozzarella, cubed

Basil Vinaigrette

Method:

Season chicken on both sides.  Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat.  Cook chicken on each side for about 5 minutes until cooked through - make sure not to move chicken too much while cooking so the sugar can caramelize on the outside.  Add the lettuce to two bowls, top with thinly sliced chicken breasts, tomatoes, mozzarella, and vinaigrette.  Serve with garlic bread if desired!