A crisp and light chicken salad
The pear and walnuts add extra crunch to this lovely healthy meal.
CUMIN-SCENTED CHICKEN WITH PEAR SALAD AND WALNUT YOGHURT Roasted vegetables
1 beetroot, scrubbed and diced 1.5cm 1 carrot, quartered lengthways and cut into thirds widthways teaspoon oil, for cooking (or use spray oil) 11⁄ teaspoons water
Walnut yoghurt
1 teaspoon chopped walnuts 2 tablespoons yoghurt Pinch of chicken spice (optional)
Pear salad
teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil 1 teaspoon vinegar (e.g. red wine, white wine, cider)
1 teaspoon mustard (e.g. Dijon, wholegrain)
teaspoon honey 2 tablespoons yoghurt 1 pear 1 tomato
Cumin-scented chicken
275g lean chicken breasts teaspoon oil, for cooking (or use spray oil) 1 teaspoon chicken spice (see below)
Chicken spice
tsp ground cumin tsp ground coriander tsp garlic powder tsp ground fennel tsp onion powder
To serve
2 tablespoons feta cheese Preheat oven to 220C. Line an oven tray with baking paper. Preheat barbecue grill or hot plate to medium-high (if using). Prepare beetroot and carrot.
1. Toss beetroot and carrot on prepared tray with oil and water and season. Bake for about 20 minutes to start with. After 20 minutes, remove tray from oven, push vegetables to one side and place walnuts on other side. Bake a further 2-3 minutes, until walnuts are toasted and vegetables are tender. Set aside to cool for 1-2 minutes.
2. While vegetables cook, prepare the salad. In a medium bowl, whisk together olive oil, vinegar, mustard, honey and second measure of yoghurt. Cut pear into quarters and thinly slice; dice tomato 1cm; finely shred cabbage. Add all to bowl, along with dressing but do not toss. Set aside.
3. Pat chicken dry and cut into steaks. To do this, place your hand flat on top of chicken breast and use a knife to slice through horizontally to make two 1.5cm thick steaks.
4. Heat oil in a medium fry-pan on medium-high heat. Rub chicken with chicken spice and season. Cook chicken for 2-3 minutes each side (depending on thickness), or until cooked through. Alternatively, cook on barbecue. Set aside, covered, before slicing, reserving any resting juices.
5. Make walnut yoghurt. Roughly chop walnuts and add to a small bowl, along with yoghurt and a pinch of chicken spice (if using). Season.
6. Add roasted vegetables to salad, toss well to combine and season.
To serve, pile pear salad onto plates. Top with cumin-scented chicken and drizzle over resting juices (if desired) and walnut yoghurt. Sprinkle over feta.
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