Fall Salad With Roast Chicken

I have been receiving Imperfect Produce for about two months now and have both positive and negative takeaways from the boxes. One, convenience! With my one foot still in a boot, grocery shopping has become a real task and I really enjoy having my vegetables delivered to my door. Two, creative thinking. With the limited options and working with two weeks at a time I have to sit down and plan out my meals. What will last a week and what should be used immediately and if I have an abundance of one produce how can I make it new and exciting.

One thing I dislike is the size of some of the items (especially the proportions for the pit to meat in an avocado). I see that the produce is “imperfect” and I have grown up to have outrageous expectations about the size of my apples. Despite this, I still find my biweekly boxes worth it and was able to plan an easy salad with everything from the box.

For Salad

• Romaine Lettuce

• Radishes

• Cucumber

• Red Bell Pepper

• Apple

• Beets

• Feta

• Chicken Thighs

For Dressing

• 3 Tbsp Canola Oil

• 2 Tbsp Sesame Oil

• 2 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar

• 1 Tsp Soy Sauce

• Squeeze of Orange

• Fresh Grated Ginger

• Garlic Powered

• Pepper

Obviously, you can make a salad with whatever you please, I for one love a variety and have listed the specific ingredients I put together in this particular salad. I wanted to blend flavors of fall, bright apple with earthy beets and creamy feta.

I chose a base of Romaine lettuce, ordering two heads from Imperfect Produce. I have gotten used to smaller produce and thought that to feed four people one head would not be enough. I was extremely wrong, these were the largest heads of lettuce I have ever seen, meaning that one lucky guest is going home with some greens. For some added flair instead of simply chopping my beets and apples, I used a peeler to create thin sheets that blend effortlessly into the salad.

I paired my fall salad with roasted chicken thighs, completing this rustic meal. I generously salt and pepper both sides of my room temperature chicken. In a 375℉ oven bake chicken for 40 minutes, until the skin is crisp and the juices run clear.

In a small container combine ingredients for dressing. A common ratio for making homemade dressing is 3:1 oil to vinegar. I find this to be too oily and I don’t like the mouthfeel, I only subtract one Tbsp of oil to my dressing making a total of 5Tbsp oils and 2 Tbsp vinegar. You are more than welcome to put the dressing together ahead of time, allow the flavors to marinade together for a few hours. When it is time to serve give the container a good shake!