HG's Wild Southwest Chicken Salad

Because we do. That is, we know the way to take the Santa Fe Chicken Salad at Chili's and turn it into a totally guilt-free meal option! Looking for actual directions to New Mexico? Umm, try Google Maps...

Ingredients:
One 4-oz. raw boneless skinless chicken breast cutlet, pounded to 1/2-inch thickness
1/8 tsp. chili powder
1/8 tsp. salt
Dash garlic powder
Dash onion powder
2 tbsp. fat-free sour cream
1/4 tsp. ranch dressing/dip seasoning mix
1 tsp. chipotle pepper sauce (like the kind by Tabasco)
4 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1/4 cup fresh pico de gallo
1 1/2 oz. sliced avocado (about 1/3rd of an avocado)
2 tbsp. coarsely chopped plus 1 tsp. finely chopped cilantro
5 baked tortilla chips, broken into bite-sized pieces

Directions:
Bring a grill pan (or skillet) sprayed with nonstick spray to medium-high heat. Season chicken with chili powder, salt, garlic powder, and onion powder. Cook chicken for about 3 minutes per side, until cooked through.

To make the dressing, in a small bowl, thoroughly mix ranch seasoning into sour cream. Add chipotle pepper sauce, and stir until uniform.

Place lettuce in a large bowl (or on a large plate). Top with pico de gallo, avocado, coarsely chopped cilantro, and tortilla chip pieces.

Slice chicken, and transfer to a medium bowl. Sprinkle with finely chopped cilantro, and toss to coat.

Top salad with chicken, and serve with dressing!

MAKES 1 SERVING

Chili's Santa Fe Chicken Salad

To get FAR away from this fatty salad! You look at the nutritional info, and it hits you like a slap to the face. "But Hungry Girl!" you stammer, "The chicken's not fried... there's no cheese, bacon, or candied nuts..." You're right. However, there are tortilla strips (fried, we presume), ranch dressing (too much fat!), a southwest sauce, and avocado (healthy fat = still fat). This salad has over 50 grams of fat! It's a huge bummer, we know. When you're at Chili's, stick to the Lighter Choices menu. But at home, make our swap for this salad! We rolled the ranch dressing and the southwest sauce into one tasty dressing, used our avocado wisely (just the right amount), and made a low-fat crunchy topper out of baked tortilla chips. So come on back, chicken... Nothing to be afraid of.