Maple and Pecan Chicken Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash

This is a simple, tasty way of cooking chicken and makes a delicious warm salad.  I also use this marinade a lot in the summer for chicken skewers on the barbecue, in a pita bread with lots of salad it makes a healthy alternative to burgers and sausages.

Honey also works well in this if you don't have any maple syrup.

Serves 3-4

Ingredients

3 tbsp Maple Syrup

1 heaped tbsp Dijon Mustard

1 tbsp Olive Oil

Juice of half a Lemon

Black Pepper

4 Large Skinless Chicken Breasts

1 Butternut Squash, peeled, deseeded and cubed
 Splash of Olive Oil, Salt and Black Pepper

4 Little Gem Lettuces

100g Pecan Nuts

For the Dressing

Juice of half a Lemon
Juice of half an Orange

1 tbsp Dijon Mustard

2 tbsp Cider Vinegar

2 tbsp Maple Syrup

5 tbsp Olive Oil

Salt and Black Pepper

• To make the marinade mix the mustard, lemon juice, olive oil and maple syrup together and add a few twists of black pepper.  Cut the chicken breasts up into bite size pieces, put into a bowl and pour over the marinade.  Cover and put in the fridge to marinate for at least an hour, longer if possible.
• Preheat the oven to 200C (fan).  Put the cubes of butternut squash into a roasting tin, add a splash of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Roast them in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, turning once halfway through the cooking.
• Make the dressing by whisking all the ingredients together, add a pinch of salt and a few twists of black pepper.
• Separate all the leaves from the little gems, wash and dry them thoroughly then put them into a large bowl.  Spoon over about 3 tablespoons of the dressing and toss the leaves to coat.
• Put a large frying pan onto a high heat, when it's very hot tip in the chicken with the marinade and let it bubble furiously.  Continue to cook the chicken on the high heat, turning it occasionally, while gradually reducing the liquid.  When the chicken is almost cooked tip in the pecan nuts and continue to fry, moving it all around until the juices are thick and syrupy and the chicken and pecans are browning.
• Divide the little gem leaves between four plates and top with the hot chicken and pecans then dot around the warm pieces of roasted squash.  Sprinkle with a little more dressing and serve.