Occasionally in life, you meet people who just make you smile.  They radiate energy, life, fun and joy and I don’t know about y’all.. but, I’m drawn to them like a moth to a flame.  Janice, is one of those people.  I met her at BlogHer and we immediately clicked.  She’s a magnetic person, driven, funny, vocal, friendly and I swear that she  can out energize the energizer bunny.  She just vibrates y’all.  We were chatting via skype one night talking food and I asked her if she’d like to do a guest post recipe for me.. she immediately said yes, and I was thrilled.  Her photography is gorgeous and if I can look like her by eating salads like this.. sign me up!

Thank you Janice, you are a wonderful friend, person and guest poster!  I’ll see you in a few days in Chicago! {hugs} Rachel

And now, without further ado from me, I give you Janice’s totally Tonguegasmic Salad Recipe.

The Summer Salad That Won’t Leave You Hungry

by Janice from 5MinutesForMom

I am a salad fanatic. I could happily eat salads seven days of the week.  But, having said that — I am not wasting away eating a small pile of lettuce with a few scattered veggies.  No, ladies, when I make a salad it is a MEAL!

And this Summer Salad will have you so full I bet you might even have trouble finishing it. (But it is so delicious, if you don’t finish it, I might come over and finish it up for you!  Well, no, I won’t. I am germ freak – but I will mourn the uneaten salad.)

Good grief, this salad is like a complete three course meal — appetizer, main course and dessert!  The chicken, cheese, and nuts give you tons of protein, the veggies and Romaine lettuce are full of vitamins and fiber to keep you feeling full, the Olive Oil dressing (you can get that recipe over at 5 Minutes for Mom) gives you heart-healthy mono-unsaturated fat, and the sweet berries top you off with anti-oxidents — and taste delicious.  Can you see why I eat salads like this most days of the week?

So lets get started:

I often choose Romaine Lettuce for my salads because I find it keeps longer in the fridge and it has the most nutrients. (And I like the crunch and the flavor.) But green leaf, red leaf, or butter leaf are also yummy. Just NO iceberg lettuce, ok?  (Rachel Seconds the no iceburg)Promise me

Can you get over the size of that Romaine Lettuce?!? Isn’t it incredible? I buy my produce from a local farm just down the street from us. $0.99 for that huge lettuce. Oh I LOVE summer!

Choose whatever are your favorite veggies. Broccoli may not be my favorite taste, but I always feel good about eating it!

I always keep red peppers in the fridge. We go through at least half a dozen a week. My kids love them and they are in almost every salad I make.

I am crazy about avocados. My kids are raised on them. Again, we go through a half a dozen or more a week. Healthy fats, protein and they are so rich and yummy!

Adding apples and nuts is such a delicious way to flavor up the salad no matter what time of year. Walnuts are delicious and also contain healthy fat. I also love adding sunflower seeds! You can usually find sunflower seeds in my salads!

The best part of summer is the fresh fruit. I load my salads up with whatever fruit I have on hand. (My hubby hates fruit on his salads, so in our house, I make individual salads, made to order.)

Time to get started! I hate tossing salads. I want to put my masterpieces together one layer at a time.

Oops — I almost forgot the celery. I love the crunch of celery!

Time to pile on the chicken and the walnuts. (BTW, I am all about the rotisserie chickens! I am too busy blogging and building super huge salads to cook!)

Now go crazy with the berries!!!

I got so excited about the berries, I forgot to add the avocados. And this salad would not be complete with avocados. So I added some avocado and topped it all with asiago cheese (I often use Mozzarella too) and sunflower seeds.

I topped it all with an Olive Oil, Balsamic, and Dijon Dressing. Head over to 5 Minutes for Mom to get my super quick and easy recipe. (I promise it doesn’t take nearly as much time as building the salad!)

Thanks so much for having me here Rachel for MouthWatering Monday! It was a treat! Hope you enjoy the salad.

If you’re joining in the Mouthwatering Monday Tonguegasmaliciousness, thank you and welcome or welcome back!  Make sure to say HI, sign MckLinky with your MWM post URL, grab your Tonguegasmic button, link back here and then go visit all the other participants.  Get inspired… do a bit of drooling and enjoy sharing the love of culinary delights with other foodies!