Martha Stewart's Turkey Taco Salad

I decided to go with an entree salad this time around. Something light, but satisfying at the end of a hot summer day. I found this recipe on marthastewart.com. I chose the turkey version of this popular dish because I love diversity in my proteins. I used a ground turkey thigh, instead of breast, because it has a higher fat content. The fat content means more flavor, and it also helps to prevent the infamous 'drying out' that turkey is notorious for. Also, the recipe calls for Boston lettuce, but 'butter lettuce' is the same thing and the name more commonly used in the grocery stores.
I loved the quick and easy prep: dicing one small onion, one small zucchini, and one small red bell pepper. Not bad, at all.
I sauteed the onions in two tablespoons of olive oil until they were translucent, not quite browning, and then added the turkey. I let this cook, stirring often, until the turkey was just starting to brown. A cup of salsa verde and the rest of the veggies were added to the pan and then other then a few quick stirs, left to cook for about 5 minutes.
The directions say to pull the pan off the heat to let the turkey mixture cool while you prep the rest of the salad, and I chose to follow these instruction instead of prepping everything ahead of time. I did this because the turkey really should be only warm when added to the lettuce mixture. Otherwise, the lettuce can wilt, and that just doesn't look or taste very good.
The lettuce mixture was two heads of Boston/butter lettuce, a cup of halved cherry tomatoes, and crushed tortilla chips, tossed with more of the salsa verde and a touch of olive oil.
When plating, I spooned the turkey blend over the salad, and then sprinkled shredded Monterey Jack cheese over the top.

It's not the prettiest thing I've ever made. Partly just because the turkey is gray...not the most gorgeous of colors to have on a plate. But, this salad is delicious. It has all the best qualities in a good dinner for me: It's quick, easy, and tastes great.
You can also substitute the ground turkey for ground beef, or (as Martha suggests) make it vegetarian and use a can of your favorite beans.
The only modifications I would make to this recipe in the future would be to add some diced avocado and a squeeze of lime before serving. Those small additions would bring the dish from good...to amazing! Also, a pairing with a good gazpacho or a cold corn chowder would compliment this dish very well.
Until next time!