pretzel crusted chicken salad with apples, sweet potato, and honey mustard vinaigrette

hi friends! i come to you (once again, always?) after another brief, unintentional hiatus and for that i deeply apologize but also **gestures at everything generally** somehow it’s basically christmas but last week was also july and wow was i unprepared for 2021 to come to a screeching end. i was also unprepared to distribute my time and effort into a lot of other things besides blogging about salad, but the time has come to amend that and here we are, absolutely gi-ving with new recipes.

i hope everyone had a lovely autumn, thanksgiving, and is tenderly preparing for the holidays and a new year. since i was last on here, i took a quick trip home to minnesota, trimmed a christmas tree, built a bookshelf and read many books, cried a few times about the ‘point’ of having to physically go to work in these mad times, made sheet pan nachos and mini bourbon apple pies, and remained optimistic that i’ll get to plan a european vacation soon (looking at you, portugal!!!)

this time of year is most often laden with hefty hearty foods, tins and tables bursting with cookies, and a blur of dishes entirely centered around tucking them with mashed potatoes. a truly delicious season, but i like to gently slide something crunchy and bright into the mix as well, and a fully fall flavored pretzel crusted chicken salad with apples, sweet potato, and a super easy honey mustard vinaigrette is making those dreams come true.

this salad is salty, sweet, textured, tangy, and really great for those days when you’re like, yes of course i’d love a chicken pot pie but i would also like to put a vegetable in my body, you know?

we are skimping on nothing and delivering everything here; we’re coating the chicken in crispy pretzels and piling it on a nest of bitter greens, sweet apples, roasted sweet potatoes, cucumbers for a bright, cooling moment, and shallots and pumpkin seeds to round the whole thing out with peak fall/winter vibes. we love.

a few things before we get started:

- you can absolutely prep all components of this salad ahead of time! just wait to dress the salad until you’re ready to eat.
- use whatever kind of pretzels you like and have on hand. big fan of the pretzel thins over here, so that’s what i used for dual maximum snacking purposes as well
- while this recipe very clearly has chicken, you could swap tempeh for a similar vegan vibe (however, truly no idea whether the pretzel crust will adhere to tempeh; if you try this, please let me know)
- quinoa or couscous would be a great addition to give this salad a little more heft if you’re serving it for dinner!

pretzel crusted chicken salad with apples, sweet potato, and honey mustard vinaigrette
makes: 4 servings
prep time: 10 minutes
cook time: 45 minutes

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 sweet potato, cubed
2 apples, cubed
2 mini cucumbers, sliced into half moons
2 shallots, sliced
1/4c pumpkin seeds
6c greens - i used spinach and arugula, but whatever you like and have on hand will work
2tsp of olive oil, to roast the sweet potatoes

for the pretzel crust:
1 1/2c pretzels or pretzel thins, crushed
1tbsp flour (white or almond will work best)
1tsp garlic powder
1/2tsp salt
1tsp black pepper
1 egg

for the honey mustard vinaigrette:
1/2c olive oil
1/4c honey
2tbsp grainy dijon mustard
1tbsp apple cider vinegar
pinch of salt, pepper, and garlic powder

preheat the oven to 425.
line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. toss the sweet potatoes in olive oil, and arrange on one of the baking sheets. roast for 30-35 minutes until they soften and become crisp around the edges.

meanwhile, set up your chicken station. beat the egg in a shallow dish. combine the pretzel, flour, and spices in another dish. gently dip each chicken breast in the egg wash, then transfer to the pretzel dish, and coat each chicken breast in the mixture. shake off the excess, and place the chicken on the remaining baking sheet. bake for 25 minutes or until fully cooked through.

while the chicken is resting, whisk the ingredients for the vinaigrette. arrange the greens, sweet potato, apple, cucumber, shallots, and pumpkin seeds in a large bowl. slice the chicken, and add to the salad. drizzle the vinaigrette over top (i also like give each piece of chicken an extra drizzle of honey, but this is up to you.)