Chicken, Apricot & Almond Kale Salad
with Cheesy Toast Croutons & Creamy Balsamic Dressing
- Wheat
- Soy
- Milk
- Eggs
- Tree Nuts
This is one of those salads that reminds you just how good greens can taste. Tender kale is dressed with creamy balsamic dressing and topped with juicy grape tomatoes, sweet dried apricots, and crisp, nutty almonds. And for a little fun: cheesy toast croutons! You’ll sprinkle ciabatta with a generous dose of our Italian cheese blend (mozzarella, provolone, Asiago, and Parmesan) and toast to melty perfection, then cut them into crouton-size cubes and scatter atop your salad. Feel free to faceplant directly into this one!
Ingredients
1 unit
Ciabatta
(Contains: Wheat, Soy)
4 ounce
Kale
1 cup
Italian Cheese Blend
(Contains: Milk)
4 ounce
Grape Tomatoes
1 ounce
Dried Apricots
10 ounce
Chicken Cutlets
2 unit
Scallions
1.5 ounce
Creamy Balsamic Dressing
(Contains: Eggs)
½ ounce
Sliced Almonds
(Contains: Tree Nuts)
Not included in your delivery
teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
1 teaspoon (tsp)
Olive Oil
2 teaspoon (tsp)
Cooking Oil
teaspoon (tsp)
Black Pepper
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Adjust rack to top position and preheat oven to 425 degrees. Wash and dry produce. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly oil. • Halve ciabatta; place on prepared baking sheet, cut sides up. Evenly top each half with Italian cheese blend. • Toast on top rack until cheese is melted and lightly browned, 8-10 minutes. • Transfer cheesy toast to a cutting board.
• While cheesy toast bakes, remove and discard any large stems from kale; chop into bite-size pieces. Halve tomatoes lengthwise. Trim and thinly slice scallions.
Pat chicken* or salmon* dry with paper towels; season all over with salt and pepper. Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add chicken or salmon (skin sides down); cook chicken until cooked through, 3-5 minutes per side, or cook salmon until skin is crisp, 5-7 minutes, then flip and cook until cooked through, 1-2 minutes more. Transfer to a cutting board.
• In a large bowl, combine kale, balsamic dressing, a drizzle of olive oil, and a pinch of salt. Using your hands, massage kale (similar to how you would knead dough) until leaves are tender, 1 minute. • Add tomatoes, scallions, dried apricots, and almonds; toss until evenly coated. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
• Once cheesy toast is cool enough to handle, cut into 1-inch cubes. TIP: Scrape up any crispy cheese bits and add them to your salad for some extra crunch! • Divide salad between bowls and top with cheesy toast croutons. Serve.
Slice chicken crosswise (skip slicing salmon!); serve atop salad.
Chicken is fully cooked when internal temperature reaches 165°.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Mar 2026- Flavor: Many loved the combination of flavors, especially the cheesy croutons and balsamic dressing. Some found it surprisingly delicious!
- Ease of prep: Quick and easy to make, with massaging the kale being an essential step for tender, flavorful greens.
- Suggestions: Consider adding protein like grilled chicken or a boiled egg for a more filling meal. Some preferred less green onion.
- Portions: Several found it light for dinner; adding extra veggies or protein can make it more substantial.
- Croutons: The cheesy bread croutons were a hit! Try cutting the ciabatta into thirds before toasting for extra crunch.
Reviews from our home cooks
Not used to a thick balsamic. Just didn't spread around the salad enough. I did a half recipe, so maybe I didn't have enough. Larger portion than I expected, but really good. The croutons were great. I might add a little Italian seasoning next time.
I love balsamic and it as a dressing on a salad is excellent. The balsamic vinegar and sweetness with the apricots was perfect.
The cheesy croutons were the best part! Such a fun way to elevate a salad!
Please keep up the salad recipes. They are excellent! There was nothing I liked least. If anything, maybe add more dressing, because I had kale left over (I like to use a good amount of dressing on my salads).
This was really good, but I would suggest more dressing. The instructions also asked to add in the kale, dressing, apricots, etc and then it proceeds to instruct the hand kneading (after the dressing is already on there). If I didn't dump everything in there already without paying attention, I would have kneaded the kale before it had dressing on it.
Surprised I liked it since I'm not a big salad fan but the combo of flavors and the crunch of the croutons made it a salad I enjoyed.
Delicious. The Cheesy bread made the dish of course, but everything was very good. Would have liked more kale - with the stems removed, the portions were pretty small.
I enjoyed this. Massaging the kale is ESSENTIAL and prevents it from being tough and bitter. Chicken was done in the air fryer.
This salad is so tasty! I roasted a can of cannellini beans with olive oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper and added them to the salad.
Please keep offering this recipe! It was so easy on a weeknight when I had to work late and wanted something healthy and didn't want to have to pickup takeout or order delivery. Delicious, healthy and like ridiculously easy.
