Recipe: Earl's Sante Fe Chicken Salad and Peanut Lime Vinaigrette (copycat recipe)

SANTE FE CHICKEN SALAD AND PEANUT LIME VINAIGRETTE
(Earl's Copycat)

"This hearty salad combines all the necessary components for a great dish with the sweet dates complementing the tart dressing. I created this recipe to copy a local restaurant's version."

FOR THE CAJUN CHICKEN:
2 whole chicken breasts cut in half
vegetable oil
favourite chili powder
FOR THE PEANUT LIME VINAIGRETTE:
1/4 cup each: fresh peanuts, vegetable or peanut oil and fresh lime juice (2 limes)
1/2 Tbsp peanut butter
1 tsp each sugar and soy sauce
1 small clove garlic, pressed or finely chopped
2 Tbsp lime zest (2 limes)
FOR THE SALAD:
1/2 cup fresh dates, chopped into 1/4" pieces
1 cup boiling water
2 small corn tortillas
vegetable oil for deep frying
4 to 5 cups mixed lettuce
2 cups chopped Romaine lettuce
1 cob corn (or 1/2 cup corn kernels)
vegetable oil
14 oz can black beans, well rinsed and well drained
1 avocado
1/2 cup feta cheese
1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts preparation

TO MAKE THE CAJUN CHICKEN:
Rub chicken breasts all over with vegetable oil; sprinkle chili powder liberally on both sides. Grill over medium-high heat or broil until done. Set aside. Slice diagonally into 1/4" wide slices.

TO MAKE THE PEANUT LIME VINAIGRETTE:
Process ingredients in a small food processor until almost smooth. There should be tiny chunks of peanut and lime.

TO MAKE THE SALAD:
(Up to one day ahead)

a) Prepare date mixture - pour boiling water over dates; soak for 1/2 hour; drain well and mash (chill until using)

b) Prepare deep fried tortilla pieces: slice tortillas into pieces 1/8" wide and 1" long. Heat oil in a small pot or skillet to 375 degrees F. Drop tortilla pieces in batches; drain on paper towel; sprinkle on salt (may be kept loosely covered at room temperature for 1 day)

c) Grill corn: rub corn with vegetable oil; place over medium-high grill. Cook, rotating until lightly brown tinged. Remove kernels. (May be chilled until using.)

TO ASSEMBLE SALAD:
Place lettuces in a large bowl. Toss with enough dressing to lightly coat. In a separate small bowl stir together mashed dates, corn and drained black beans. Crumble chunks of black bean mixture into lettuces; gently toss. Divide lettuce mixture between 4 dinner plates. Thinly slice avocado and divide between 4 plates, placing on the side. Top each salad with crumbled feta cheese, tortilla pieces, chicken pieces and chopped peanuts, if desired.

Makes 4 meal servings
Source: Epicurious