BLT Balsamic Chicken Avocado Salad

The Sunday dinners have become the center of my week in a way I want to write down before it feels ordinary. Ordinary is what happens after you stop noticing. I do not want to stop noticing.

Gloria arthritis has been steadily worsening over these spring and summer months. Not in a dramatic way, just in the way that chronic things worsen: slowly, stubbornly, in small increments that add up. She can still cook but she tires more quickly. Her hands shake slightly on certain mornings. She has given me more of the kneading, the stirring, the things that require repetitive grip. I do them without comment. She does not need me to acknowledge it. She needs me to be there.

This Sunday I made the full Sunday dinner: smothered chicken, rice, butter beans slow-cooked with ham, sliced tomatoes from the garden, cornbread. Gloria tasted everything and approved everything and James ate everything. After dinner she asked me to write the recipes down, the way she has them on index cards, but in a more complete way, with more explanation of technique. She said: you know them now. Write them down so they do not get lost.

I sat at her kitchen table that evening and wrote out eight recipes in a composition notebook, her handwriting and mine together on different pages. I described the techniques in detail: how long to cook the greens, when the gravy is ready, how to know the biscuit dough is right by feel. I wrote it the way she taught me, which is not just a list of ingredients but a map of what to pay attention to.

I drove home with the notebook on the passenger seat. It felt like a trust I had been handed.

The chicken was the heart of everything on that Sunday table, and the tomatoes Gloria grows herself showed up at every meal—sliced simply, without dressing, because she said good tomatoes don’t need help. This BLT Balsamic Chicken Avocado Salad is where I land when I want to honor that same instinct: chicken at the center, tomatoes treated like the main event they are, and a dressing that pulls everything into focus the way a good gravy does. It is built the way she taught me to cook—with attention, with intention, and with nothing wasted.

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 lb total)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
Salt and black pepper to taste
1 tbsp olive oil, for the pan
6 strips bacon
1 large head romaine lettuce, chopped
2 medium garden tomatoes, cut into wedges (or 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved)
1 large avocado, pitted and sliced
1/4 red onion, very thinly sliced
For the balsamic dressing:
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp honey
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

Cook the bacon. In a large skillet over medium heat, lay bacon strips flat and cook until deeply crispy, turning once, about 8–10 minutes total. Transfer to a paper towel–lined plate. When cool enough to handle, crumble or break into rough pieces.
Season the chicken. Pat chicken breasts dry with a paper towel—this matters for a good sear. Season both sides evenly with garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and black pepper.
Cook the chicken. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in the same skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook undisturbed for 6–7 minutes, then flip and cook another 6–7 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Let rest on a cutting board for 5 minutes before slicing against the grain.
Make the dressing. In a small bowl or jar, combine balsamic vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, honey, and minced garlic. Whisk or shake until fully emulsified. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. The dressing should be tangy with a slight sweetness—not sharp.
Build the salad. Arrange chopped romaine across a large platter or divide among four bowls. Layer on the sliced chicken, tomato wedges, avocado slices, crumbled bacon, and red onion. Keep the components visible rather than tossed—this is a salad meant to be seen before it’s eaten.
Dress and serve. Drizzle the balsamic dressing over the salad just before serving. Serve immediately so the romaine stays crisp and the avocado stays bright.

Nutrition (per serving)

BLT Balsamic Chicken Avocado Salad — The Recipe Gloria Asked Me to Write Down