Carribbean Salmon Salad with Cilantro Dressing

I'm extremely jealous of all the adorable fall burgundies, infinity scarves, elbow patches, ankle booties, and plaid that I'm seeing all over Pinterest right now. It's still summer here in California, and an icy diet coke is one of the only ways I can cool down during a hot day of shopping an the outdoor outlets with my fellow bloggers (who am I kidding, diet cokes will always be on my menu, regardless of the outside chill factor).

So we're still eating refreshing salads up in here!

This is one that I came up with this summer, and I must say, it's definitely my new favorite.

Carribbean Salmon Salad with Cilantro Dressing

Ingredients

salmon filet (if you buy pre-seasoned, choose one with some spices or herbs, but steer clear of lemon as it would clash with the other flavors of the salad)

romaine lettuce (I cheat and buy the pre-washed, pre-chopped bags, the one with purple cabbage)

1/2 can black beans, rinsed

1 mango, chopped

1/4 red onion, diced

2 tomatoes, chopped

3 corn tortillas

oil spray

coarse salt

Tomatillo Cilantro Dressing:

1 jalapeno, seeds removed and pepper chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

3 tomatillos, paper husks removed and chopped

1/2 bunch cilantro

1 lime's juice

1 c milk (low-fat or fat-free will change the taste, but it's still good)

1 c mayonaise (low-fat or fat-free will change the taste, but it's still good)

1 package ranch dressing mix

Instructions

First prepare your dressing. This recipe will give you enough dressing for at least ten individual salads, but it stores well in the refrigerator for about a week. I've used it on all sorts of salads, dipping chicken taquitos in, chip dip paired with salsa, all sorts of things. Throw all of the prepared dressing items into a blender and blend. Place in refrigerator to chill and thicken.

Next, cook (bake, grill, fry, however you roll) your salmon. I like olive oil, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes, grilled. Set aside to cool. Once cool, break up into bite-size pieces.

Last, make your tortilla strips. Heat oven or toaster over to 400 degrees. Lay tortillas side by side, and spray with oil. Flip over and repeat. Use a pizza cutter to cut tortillas into strips, place strips onto baking sheet, spread apart, and sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake about ten minutes, flipping halfway through until crisp. Watch them carefully, they burn quickly (speaking from experience). After they're done baking, remove from pan to cool.

Now for the fun part, assembling the salad!

I know I've mentioned that I love assembling food items, it's an interesting personality quirk.

Top lettuce with beans, tomatoes, mangos, onions, salmon, dressing, then the tortilla strips and cilantro. Viva la summer!

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