Zucchini Cranberry Walnut Salad

I have this love fest for Aldi's Grocery Little Salad Bar brand Cranberry Almond Chicken Salad shown below. When my sisters, Bebeng and Menchie (shown below with Maddie my granddaughter) came for a visit this month, they also found this salad irresistible.  So much so they made sandwiches out of this salad to take with them on their airplane ride to Los Angeles.  Luckily they left me with one full container of this awesome salad which I ate with gusto.

I had been off my plant based diet when my dear sisters were here and I have decided to go back to this approach to eating.  For one thing I have not had a cold or flu since I adapted this way of eating and I want to stick to it.  I am a believer.  Anyway I could not get this chicken salad off my mind especially during lunch. What is key to this salad is the combination of the ingredients and I thought that as long as I could mimic the delicious dressing, substituting some kind of veggie with a crunch for the chicken might work.

I resorted to using good old zucchini.  It has a neutral taste and good crunchy texture.  I added nuts, walnut, in this recipe and dried cranberries that give the salad its distinct personality and deliciousness. I used light Miracle Whip but one can use plant based mayo.  I just have this love fest with Miracle Whip. I added rice vinegar which gave the dressing an added tang.

Did I miss the chicken?  Of course there is nothing like having chicken pieces but you know what with the delicious dressing, the nuts, cranberries and crunch of the zucchini, you will fall in love with this vegetarian version like I did. Try it.

Zucchini Cranberry Walnut Salad

• 1 large zucchini, cubed 
• 1/2 cup walnut
• 1/2 cup sweet dried cranberries
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 3/4 cup light Miracle Whip
• 2 tsp rice vinegar
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp nutritional yeast
• salt and pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl.  Serve over lettuce or over lettuce lined bread or as it is as a salad.