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Chicken, Bacon, and Tomato Salad
(Click here for Turkey, Spinach & Feta Cheese Salad)

by Dennis Weaver

This salad recipe was inspired by the perennially favorite club sandwich. It boasts chicken, bacon, tomato, and mozzarella on a bed of spinach greens and is topped with a creamy vinaigrette.
The dressing can be made with either yogurt or mayonnaise -- whichever you prefer. It's made with equal parts lime juice and honey with just a bit of prepared mustard. If you prefer, use a commercial dressing.

For the Salad

1 1/2 cups sliced, cooked chicken meat
spinach greens
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1/2 pound bacon, cooked and crumbled

1/2 cup plain yogurt or mayonnaise
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup honey
1 dash salt
1/2 tablespoon prepared mustard

1. At the store, buy the deli meat and salad greens. We're partial to spinach but suit yourself. Buy the tomatoes and some grated mozzarella. You can buy precooked bacon or nuke some at home in the microwave.

2. Put all your salad ingredients in the cooler. Do not cut up the tomatoes. Make sure that the cooler is well-packed with ice. (Click here for more tips about coolers.)

3. Mix the dressing ingredients together. Whisk until smooth. Put the dressing in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and place the dressing in the cooler.

4. On the road, dice or slice the tomatoes. Arrange the chicken, tomatoes, cheese, and spinach greens on a plate. Serve with dressing on the side.

Dennis Weaver -- having burnt food from Miami, Florida to Point Barrow, Alaska -- is RTA's road food expert. He has logged thousands of hours on the roads, trails, and waterways of America including many of Alaska's wilderness rivers and has consistently been elected the trips' "chief cook and bottle washer." Dennis is currently general manager at The Prepared Pantry, a company in Rigby, Idaho, that produces ready-to-eat meals and baking mixes packaged in Mylar. Weatherproof, bug-proof, and critter resistant, they're ideal for both roadtrips and back woods camping. Dennis may be reached at dweaver@preparedpantry.com.