I recently got some raspberry vinegar on a wander through the grocery store and this whole meal prep is planned around getting to use it! That and my love for a good, filling salad

The recipe

For me, any good salad has delicious greens, crunchy elements, lots of veggies, a grain/starch component, some protein, and a tangy dressing. This salad has all of that!

• the greens – lately I’ve been a big fan of a combination of spinach and romaine lettuce. I love the crunchy romaine and the yummy spinach together. I do have some tips for storage, see the storage section below!
• the protein – I switched up my usual balsamic chicken and used my raspberry vinegar instead of the balsamic vinegar and it’s so good! The only catch is there’s more sugar in the raspberry vinegar so the chicken can burn a bit easily, so finishing it in the oven helped keep it all tasty and moist
• the starch – I roasted up some sweet potatoes I had hanging out and they’ll add some extra heft to the salad so I stay full all afternoon
• the veggies – I used what I had, including some cucumber, green apples, carrots, and red onion!
• the crunch – toasted walnuts are the perfect crunch here to add some extra texture
• the dressing – I used my go-to balsamic vinaigrette recipe but subbed the raspberry vinegar to make it a raspberry vinaigrette and I love how it came out! It also ties into the chicken and finishes off the whole salad beautifully

STORAGE

In the past I’ve avoided meal prepping salads because it’s so hard to make sure that it stays fresh all week. However, I’ve finally cracked the code and want to share what I’ve learned with you!

• storing greens – I’ve found that, regardless of the greens you’re storing, your best bet is to wash them and make sure they’re as dry as humanly possible. then, place in a large storage bag along with one or two paper towels to capture any remaining moisture. Doing this I’ve found that anything, even my spinach, will easily last all week
• storing cut fruits – if you wanted to switch it up and are using a fruit that browns, put a squeeze of lemon juice on it before storing and they’ll stay fresh! The browning isn’t harmful, it jut doesn’t look appetizing. The acid in the lemon juice dramatically slows that process

VARIATIONS

I love salads because you can switch them up so easily. Pick a theme for your salad, for this one mine was using my raspberry vinegar, and then pick items in each category listed above that will go with your theme. Take it in whatever direction that sounds good to you!

Yield: 5 servings

Raspberry Vinaigrette Salad

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Fresh, bright, and filling, this salad is a delicious meal prep or quick weeknight dinner! The raspberry vinaigrette is the perfect finishing touch!

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Ingredients

for the chicken

• 2 chicken breasts
• 2 Tbsp neutral oil
• 2 Tbsp raspberry vinegar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

for the toppings

• 2 medium sweet potatoes
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cucumber
• 1 small red onion
• 1 large granny smith apple
• juice from 1/2 lemon
• carrots
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• spinach & romaine lettuce

for the vinaigrette

• 3 Tbsp raspberry vinear
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1 clove garlic, grated
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

1. marinade the chicken: combine all of the chicken ingredients, other than the chicken, in a bowl or plastic bag. add the chicken and marinate for at least 30 minutes
2. roast the sweet potatoes: preheat the oven to 425*. cube the sweet potatoes into 1/2" cubes and toss with oil and salt. spread out on a large baking sheet and roast for 20-25 minutes until slightly browned and soft
3. prep the toppings: deseed and slice the cucumber. thinly slice the red onion. cube the granny smith apple and toss with lemon juice to prevent browning
4. cook the chicken: preheat the oven to 375*. heat a grill pan or other oven safe pan over medium heat. cook the chicken for 5 minutes on each side, then transfer to the oven to finish cooking for an additional 10 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 160*
5. enjoy! store all of the elements separately and combine when ready to eat, or before leaving for work or school, leaving the dressing on the side. see the notes in the post for storage tips!