Barbecue Chicken Cobb Salad with Avocado Ranch Dressing
Ready in a flash, bursting with healthy ingredients and impressive enough for entertaining, this Barbecue Chicken Cobb Salad comes together quickly with the help of leftover chicken. Loaded with fresh veggies, blue cheese, avocado, bacon and beans, this is a main course salad that will not leave you hungry!
I think it’s safe to say that grilling season is officially here….even though we are still dealing with days and days of soggy weather. My ark is almost finished…I plan to roll the grill on there any day now. Seriously, can it end soon? I feel like I have serious Vitamin D deficiency and NEED to lounge in the sun like a lazy cat for a few hours. We’re heading back to the shore this weekend and guess what….rain is in the forecast! I mean, I just can’t even deal.
But when the sun does peak through for the 47 seconds each week, I do fire up the grill and I think because I’m out of practice I grill WAY too much of whatever it is I’m making like Barbecue Chicken or Grilled Fajitas. So, I’m always searching for ways to use up the remaining dinner ingredients in creative ways so my family doesn’t revolt because I serve the same thing more than one day in a row. AND since summer is coming, I like to create recipes that don’t involve standing over a searing hot oven or blazing hot grill in the event the sun does come out and the temperature reaches something more summer-ish….like maybe 85? 90? 95? I wouldn’t complain. It gives me a reason to whip up some popsicles….adult popsicles.
So, when I make enough Barbecue Chicken to feed an army but there’s only two of us here to eat it….I like to make this Barbecue Chicken Cobb Salad with Avocado Ranch Dressing. It’s a pretty stunning salad…everyone is always dazzled by it. And it’s tastes as amazing as it looks!! It’s packed with so many flavors but they all pair perfectly with one another….blue cheese, egg, spicy almonds, black eyed peas, avocado, tomatoes, carrots, radish…you name it…it’s probably in there. AND if you don’t like it…you can leave it out. There are no rules here, just good hearty, healthy flavor.
In fact, I don’t think I ever have rules in my recipes…let’s call them guidelines and I’m guiding you towards this Barbecue Chicken Cobb Salad because it will be the best salad you’ve ever made. Or a close second to this Caribbean Cobb Salad….or this pretty Roasted Pear Salad…or this Salmon Nicoise Salad. Ok…I’ll stop. Ok…one more…or this Instagram worthy Spinach Salad.
Get the Recipe: Barbecue Chicken Cobb Salad with Avocado Ranch Dressing
Ingredients
- 3 ears corn, shucked
- 2 cups baby spinach, rinsed and patted dry
- 2 cups baby arugula, rinsed and patted dry
- 2 cups chopped leaf lettuce, rinsed and patted dry
- 2 cups chopped barbecue chicken
- 1 cup canned black eyed peas, rinsed and drained
- 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 1 cup matchstick cut carrots
- 1 cup chopped scallions
- 1/2 cup sliced radishes
- 1/2 cup crumbled cooked bacon
- 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
- 1/2 cup chopped Habanero Barbecue Almonds
- 1 large avocado, diced
- 2 hard boiled eggs, sliced
- 1 1/2 cups Avocado Ranch Dressing
Instructions
- Char the corn over a gas burner or under the broiler, turning occasionally to char on all sides. Transfer to a plate and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, remove the kernels from the cob by cutting carefully with a sharp knife. Discard the cob.
- Toss the greens together in a large bowl. Arrange the greens on a large platter. Top the greens with the remaining ingredients in rows, excluding the dressing, if desired. (Or toss all ingredients together in a bowl.)
- Drizzle the dressing over the salad, serve immediately.
One Comment on “Barbecue Chicken Cobb Salad with Avocado Ranch Dressing”
This salad makes me so happy! I love the flavors and how filling this salad will be. Thanks so much for posting this recipe!! 🙂