chicken nicoise salad / marinated vegetables & white beans / hard boiled egg

Contents of your meal kit:

chicken
green beans
tomatoes
white beans
balsamic vinaigrette base
onion
kalamata olives
organic egg(s)
herb salad mix

Cookware needed: small or medium saucepan with a lid, medium bowl, salad bowl, small to medium nonstick skillet

Finishing steps:

  1. Fill the saucepan with water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Meanwhile, trim stem end from green beans, and cut in half if you prefer bite sized pieces. Fill a medium bowl with cold water and ice.
  2. When water in saucepan is boiling, add the trimmed green beans. Blanch about 60 seconds until bright green but still crisp. Drain green beans, then transfer to the ice water bowl to stop the cooking process. Once cooled completely, drain again and set aside on a clean towel to dry.
  3. Slice tomatoes in half. Rinse and drain white beans. Pour vinaigrette base into the bottom of your salad bowl and add an equal amount of olive oil. Whisk or mix with a fork to combine (see note). Add tomatoes, white beans, green beans, onion, and olives to salad bowl. Season with salt & pepper. Toss to combine, set aside to marinate.
  4. Meanwhile, place egg(s) in the bottom of the saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, cover, and immediately remove from heat. Set a timer for 12 minutes. While you wait, prepare another bowl of ice water. When the 12-minute timer is up, drain egg(s) and carefully transfer to ice water. After about 1 minute, crack and peel your egg(s). Slice into quarters.
  5. While egg(s) are cooking, heat a small amount of oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Season both sides of chicken with salt & pepper. When oil is hot, add chicken to skillet and cook about 5 minutes per side or until cooked through. Transfer to a cutting board and slice chicken.
  6. Divide greens between plates, top with sliced chicken and marinated vegetables, drizzling any remaining vinaigrette over the top. Arrange quarters of hard boiled egg on top, season with a little salt & pepper to taste.

Notes: For a fancy presentation, marinate the vegetables in separate small bowls, reserving a little vinaigrette for the greens. Toss the greens and divide between plates, then arrange the vegetables on top of the greens to finish.