I have a confession; Mrs Cooksfoodgood and I don’t always cook at home; sometimes we order in (especially when our daughter came). We became hooked on a Chicagoland favorite, the Chopped Salad. While every pizzeria and sandwich shop has their own version, three things are non negotiable; chopped greens, cured meat, and ditalini pasta (Italian for small thimbles). Since we moved to Michigan, we have had a massive salad bowl shaped void in our lives.. until now. Make this Chopped Salad a main with grilled chicken or shrimp.
Chicago Chopped Salad
Side of Italian Beef optional
Servings 4 Servings
Ingredients
- 8 oz Ditalini pasta*
- ½ cup turkey pepperoni
- 6 cups lettuce (iceberg and spinach work great)
- 1 cup cherry tomato
- 1 cup roasted red pepper
- 1 cucumber
- 1 cup olives (green or black)
- 1 avocado
- 2 lemons**
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard**
- ¼ cup olive oil**
- 4 ounces crumbled gorgonzola cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Boil salted water in pasta pot; cook ditalini until very al dente, 7-8 minutes.
- Chop veggies (tomato, red pepper, cucumber, olives, avocado) into uniform cubes and quarter pepperoni. Roughly chop lettuce.
- Juice lemons into bowl, add in Dijon. Whisk in olive oil, season with salt and pepper.**
- Assemble Chopped Salad. Eat. Enjoy. Repeat.
Notes
*Make the entire box, add some to your next soup, or do like I do and just dump a ton of pasta into the salad. Bonus points if you use, say, a chickpea pasta for added nuttiness.
**The classic chopped salad has either a mayo based poppy dressing or a classic Italian dressing. This lemon vinaigrette is just a little lighter, but just about anything works.
**The classic chopped salad has either a mayo based poppy dressing or a classic Italian dressing. This lemon vinaigrette is just a little lighter, but just about anything works.
Nutrition
Serving: 4People | Calories: 444kcal
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