Cheesecake Factory Chopped Salad
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Cheesecake Factory Chopped Salad is a delicious blend of romaine, juicy grilled chicken, grape tomatoes, diced avocado, sweet corn, smoky bacon, chunks of blue cheese and diced apple all tossed in a light Balsamic Vinaigrette! This salad has something for everyone – with a little crunch, a little sweet, a little meat – it’s my favorite!
What You Will ❤️ About Chopped Salad
- Crunch! I love the crunch of the crisp apple – I used a Pink Lady – and had to stop myself from eating it along the way!
- Bite! Blue Cheese has a bite – and if you’re not a fan – I dare you to try it! When it’s tossed with all these other yummy ingredients – it might surprise you!
- Meaty! The combo of grilled chicken and smoky bacon makes a tasty salad! I love the combo but don’t cook your bacon too much otherwise it’ll just be bacon bits!
Cheesecake Factory Chopped Salad Ingredients
We all know the menu at the Cheesecake Factory is ginormoous. That said – I have a few things I get on repeat because they’re so good – and salad saves room for cheesecake!
The Factory Chopped Salad is pretty easy to recreate because you get a taste of each ingredient in every bite! Here’s what you’ll need:
- Romaine lettuce – I used two hearts of romaine and it made enough salad for at least 4! You could sub spinach, kale or any mix you love!
- Diced grilled chicken breasts – OK – I cheated and used frozen grilled chicken bites! I let them thaw and then threw them in a skillet for a few min. 🙂 You can grill your own chicken if you like!
- Grape tomatoes – any tomatoes will work (cherry tomatoes, roma tomatoes) – these are just what CF uses!
- Avocados – get the ripe avocado! I have found that keeping the avocados in the fridge makes them last longer and slows ripening.
- Canned corn – You can grill corn or use fresh – but again – for the quickness – I bought a tiny can of whole kernel corn! Frozen is also an option but be sure that you use thawed corn kernels.
- Cooked Bacon – this is where I don’t cheat! I cooked bacon and then chopped it. I always take the bacon off when you think it might be underdone because it continues to cook. I like my bacon meaty vs crisp-cooked bacon.
- Blue Cheese – I got the pre-crumbled blue cheese cuz its what my Kroger had. It’s not a very strong blue cheese but it still worked!
- Diced Apple – any crunchy apple – Honey Crisp, Pink Lady, Granny Smith Apple, etc – will work! I leave the peel on but wash the fruit first.
Ingredients for Balsamic Vinaigrette
You can always buy a vinaigrette – but making one is pretty simple and has just a few ingredients! I also like making it because then I have just the right amount for the salad I’m making!
- Olive Oil
- Balsamic Vinegar – get a good one and be sure to store in a dark, cool cabinet!
- Dijon Mustard – I never go for anything other than Grey Poupon – marketing works!
- Minced shallot – you can use minced red onion if you like
- Garlic – fresh garlic for a salad dressing!
- Salt & Pepper
Recipe Variations
Salads are great because if you don’t like one ingredient – just swap it out – and it doesn’t affect cooking, etc. Here are some options if you’d like to change it up:
- Dressing – change it up and use Ranch or a bottled dressing if you don’t want to make Balsamic Vinaigrette. You can also use a light vinaigrette like they do at CF when you get the Skinnylicious version!
- Berries – add strawberries & blueberries
- Salmon – swap out the chicken for seared salmon – you might want to lay on top vs mixing in so you don’t break it apart too much
- Cheese – not a fan of Blue cheese, swap with feta!
- Protein – you could always add a couple of hard boiled eggs for more protein!
How to make Cheesecake Factory Chopped Salad
Salads are a great option and you can whip them up in just minutes! I took a shortcut by using previously grilled chicken – and the rest went together quick! You can make the dressing earlier in the day if you’d like to give the flavors time to meld together.
- For the dressing: in a small food processor or blender, combine dressing ingredients and blend. You could also make in a mason jar and shake to combine.
- In a large bowl, combine cut-up romaine lettuce, chicken, tomatoes, avocado, corn, bacon, blue cheese and apples.
- Toss until mixed.
- Add Balsamic Vinaigrette, tossing well.
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Tips, Tricks & FAQs
I recommend only adding dressing to the amount of salad you’ll be eating. Dressed salad won’t last long in the fridge as the lettuce will quickly get funky. Store leftover salad in ziploc bag in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. Store leftover dressing in an airtight storage container or mason jar in the fridge for 5-7 days.
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Cheesecake Factory Chopped Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
Chopped Salad
- 2 heads romaine lettuce chopped
- 1.5 cups grilled chicken breasts diced
- 4 oz grape tomatoes seeded and diced fine
- 2 medium avocados pitted and chopped
- 8 oz canned corn drained
- 5 slices bacon cooked
- 4 oz blue cheese crumbles
- 1 pink lady apple chopped (leave skin on)
Balsamic Vinaigrette
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp shallot minced
- 1 garlic clove crushed
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- For the dressing: in a small food processor or blender, combine dressing ingredients and blend. You could also make in a mason jar and shake to combine.1/2 cup olive oil, 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 1 tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 tbsp shallot, 1 garlic clove, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
- In a large bowl, combine cut-up romaine lettuce, chicken, tomatoes, avocado, corn, bacon, blue cheese and apples.2 heads romaine lettuce, 1.5 cups grilled chicken breasts, 4 oz grape tomatoes, 2 medium avocados, 8 oz canned corn, 5 slices bacon, 4 oz blue cheese, 1 pink lady apple
- Toss until mixed.
- Add Balsamic Vinaigrette, tossing well.
