Creamy Lo-Cal Balsamic Dressing (made w/ Navy Beans) & Leafy Grilled Chicken Salad

Not only do I try to eat healthy, wholesome foods, but I also need to watch my caloric intake -- just because something is organic, it doesn't make it lo-cal.  I absolutely love cheese and butter and in general "creamy foods" and I especially love creamy salad dressings when I eat green salads.  When I discovered the recipe for Creamy Balsamic dressing and made it and ate it for the first time, I thought that I had hit pay dirt!  Here was a way to fulfill my love of creamy salad dressings and still keep it as lo-cal as any oil & vinegar salad dressing could possibly be and it was a very nutritious and healthy way to go!  So, if you are a creamy salad dressing lover, I want to know if this recipe fills the bill for you as it has for me!


Creamy Balsamic Dressing
1/2 cup no-salt added cooked Great Northern Beans (or navy beans), rinsed and drained.

(see my post about cooking your own dried beans and use your own cooked Navy beans. http://artofcookingfromscratch.blogspot.com/2010/06/prepping-and-cooking-musical-fruit.html )

If I use canned beans, I double this recipe and use 1 can of beans = 1 cup, which makes about 2 cups of dressing, so double all of the following ingredients, if you use 1 cup of beans.)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 large cloves of garlic

8 large fresh basil leaves

1/8 teaspoon salt

                                              Puree beans, oil vinegar, garlic, basil and salt in blender or food processor until smooth.  That's it -- you now have a fabulous creamy dressing that tastes good on a grilled chicken salad or even as a condiment on hamburgers, etc.

 Leafy Grilled Chicken Salad (Tastes great with the Creamy Balsamic Dressing)
5 ounces mixed baby greens
1 1/2 cup pregrilled chicken breast strips (I have a Ginger Lime Marinade that works pretty good for grilling chicken  http://artofcookingfromscratch.blogspot.com/2010/07/ginger-lime-marinade.html)
1/4 large red onion, thinly sliced (about 1/4th cup)
1 cup grape tomatoes or halved cherry tomatoes
(I have also added alfalfa sprouts, garbanzo beans or shelled edamame, artichoke heart quarters, sunflower seeds & whatever else you like in salad -- I have also omitted the chicken)


Arrange the greens among 4 salad plates. Top evenly with the other salad ingredients. Drizzle only about 1/4 cup of the dressing for all 4 plates.