Cherry Chicken Salad

Connie isn't terribly fond of fruit.  Soup, fruit and corn.  That's pretty much his no-go list.  I could live on soup.  Mom's minestrone in particular.  But, I also love fruit and corn.  So, tonight when our cart at Costco looked like a Fruitopia, he wasn't amused.  Pears, peaches, cherries, clementines and red grapes all came home with us.  What are you going to make with all of that???  That was the question of the evening. 

I'd decided to make the cherry tabouleh I made last year.  But, we got home and didn't have cucumbers or parsley.  Most of my herbs are producing well.  Except for the parsley.  I'd bought a rotisserie chicken thinking I'd just go ahead and slice some to go with the tabouleh.  How about chicken salad with cherries instead?  Off to eatyourbooks.com and I found a plethora of such recipes.  Many called for tarragon.  Which I don't have.  A few called for dill.  Which I have in abundance.  I read all the ingredients in all the recipes and decided on my own recipe.  Which was fabulous if I do say so myself!

Cherry Chicken Salad
makes 4 good-sized sandwiches

Ingredients:

1 large chicken breast, cooked and chopped
2 ribs celery, diced
1 cup cherries, pitted and quartered
3/4 c walnuts, toasted and chopped
1 shallot, minced
1/4 c sour cream
1/2 c mayonnaise (or more to taste)
2 fronds fresh dill, minced
onion buns or bread, toasted or not

Asian Chicken Salad

Connie and I had the best lunch recently.  About 11:45 I headed for the kitchen in the office knowing that I had a conference call at noon.  I'd toasted the sesame seeds and the almonds at home.  The chicken was shredded.  And, I'd bought slaw mix so the cabbage and carrots were done.  The dressing was made at O'Dark Thirty that morning at home.  So, that left chopping up the red bell pepper and assembling the salads.  A handful of spring greens into the bowls topped with the chicken salad then a sprinkle of rice noodles and we were ready to go.  I used up about 2/3 of the salad.  As I ran into my office for the call, I asked Connie to please put the rest of the salad in a refrigerator container.  When I got done with the call, there was Connie with an empty bowl.  The rest of the salad was in his belly and he had a smile on his face. 

So, you can tell what we thought about this recipe from Giada's most recent cookbook:  Weeknights With Giada.  YUM.  This was fresh and light and perfectly balanced.  The flavors just totally dance on your tongue.  I love the fact that it's loaded with vegetables.  With a rotisserie chicken and a bag of slaw mix, this is also a cinch to put together.  This is a salad we'll make regularly!  Actually, as I'm typing this I know that in the groceries we bought this evening there's a bag of slaw mix and another red bell pepper...  Oh, and we doubled the dressing - but the recipe below reflects the quantity in the original recipe.

Asian Chicken Salad

Ingredients:
spring greens
one bag slaw mix
1 red bell pepper, diced
2-3 T fresh basil, chopped
2 c shredded chicken (we used a rotisserie chicken)
1/2 c slivered or sliced almonds, toasted
1 T white or black sesame seeds, toasted
1/4 vegetable or olive oil
2 T low sodium soy sauce
2 T rice wine vinegar
1/2 t sugar
salt and pepper
chow mein or rice noodles (we used rice noodles)

Directions:

Toss the chicken, slaw mix, basil, red bell pepper, almonds and sesame seeds together.  In a small bowl combine the oil, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and salt and pepper.  Toss the dressing with the salad.  In each bowl, put a handful of spring greens.  Top that with chicken salad, then sprinkle with the rice noodles. 

adapted from Weeknights with Giada

Meet the Candidate

Whew!  It sure feels good to sit down.  We had a meet the candidate for a friend of ours who's running for Congress - Dr. John McGoff. 

It was at the office since parking's easier there AND it's a lot easier to clean.  Ok, fine.  Cleaning's the biggest reason :-)  Tuesday night I made two veggie dips.  The ubiquitous dill dip and green herb tapenade.  Wednesday night I actually left the office at 5:00 to head home and start cooking. 

Here's what we got done Wednesday:

blue cheese spread
crab remoulade dip
black bean salsa
baked brie
shrimp with bloody mary cocktail sauce
hard cooked eggs with anchovy crumbs
chicken salad
spuma di tonno (tuna foam)

Our "bar" was the top of the shredder box.  The appetizers were on pretty much every available surface in our "family room" area.  Here are a couple of shots of the party:

Now, let's get to the important part - appetizers!

The blue cheese spread is from one of my favorite cookbooks - Back Home Again.  It's from the Indianapolis Junior League.  My notes show I first made it in August, 1995 and rated it "Awesome."  Indeed it is.

Blue Cheese Spread

Ingredients:
1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened
1/3 crumbled blue cheese
1/3 c lowfat yogurt
1/4 c toasted, chopped pecans
2 T minced chives

Directions:
Whip the cream cheese.  Mix in the blue cheese, yogurt and chives.  This is best done with a mixer.  Then, fold in the pecans.  Serve with crackers, baguette or sliced apples.


The crab remoulade dip was my invention.  I knew I didn't have time for crab cakes with remoulade sauce.  And, with just a toaster oven at the office heating them would be tough.  None of my crabmeat dip recipes sounded like what I wanted.  So, I made one up.

Crab Remoulade Dip

Ingredients:
2 8 oz packages cream cheese, softened
1 20 oz can crabmeat (we use Trader Joe's claw crabmeat)
3 T capers
1 T lemon juice
6 T cream
1 T Old Bay seasoning
2 T chopped shallots
2 t dijon mustard
1/2 t Tabasco
2 t Worcestershire sauce

Directions:
Whip the cream cheese.  Add the other ingredients with the exception of the capers, shallots and crabmeat.  Blend them with your mixer.  Fold in the capers, shallots and crabmeat.  Pour the mixture into an ovenproof baking dish.  Heat at 350 for about 20 minutes or until bubbly.  Serve with crackers or baguette.


When I pulled Back Home Again out to get the blue cheese spread recipe, the cookbook fell open to Black Bean Salsa.  Gotta make that.  I love the fact that this can be made with rum or tequila.  I've used both and have to say what is best depends on my mood :-)  I'm a huge fan of black beans - well, just about any bean! - and this is one of my very favorite ways to enjoy them.

Black Bean Salsa

Ingredients:
1 15 oz can black beans, drained
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1 T chopped green onions
1 navel orange, peeled and chopped
2 T finely chopped red bell pepper (I've been known to sub green pepper)
1 T dark rum or tequila
1 1/2 t Dijon mustard
1 1/2 t red wine vinegar
1 T fresh OJ
1/2 t grated orange rind
1/4 c vegetable or olive oil

Directions: 
Mix all the ingredients.  I've found that it's best to mix the beans and dressing ingredients the night before then let them all get happy together in the fridge.  Then, right before serving, I add the jalapenos, orange etc.



Next up was the baked brie.  We've made a dozen variations on this.  Cranberry chutney, peach preserves, you name it.  This was the first baked brie I ever had - back in 1978.  And, it remains my favorite.

Baked Brie

Ingredients:
wedge of brie
brown sugar
pecans

Directions:
Put the wedge of brie in an ovenproof baking dish. 

Pack brown sugar on it - about 1/4" deep. 

Arrange pecans over the brown sugar.  You want to cover the entire wedge. 

Bake until it's nice an melty.  About 20 minutes at 350 should do it.



You're actually supposed to poach the shrimp for this in a vodka broth.  It's fabulous but not absolutely necessary.  What is necessary is this fantastic cocktail sauce.  I'm a lover of St. Elmo's super hot cocktail sauce made with fresh horseradish.  That wimpy stuff just doesn't cut it after St. Elmo's.  This is the first homemade version that's passed my test.  I found the recipe in Coastal Living.  We first made it up at Donna and Phil's and all of us just inhaled this.  Then, I made the sauce for our holiday party and the same thing happened.  Seems like everyone else feels the same way I do!


Shrimp with Bloody Mary Cocktail Sauce

Ingredients:
1 c ketchup
1/2 c chili sauce
1/4 t celery salt
1 t Tabasco
3 T prepared horseradish
2 T lemon juice
1 t freshly ground black pepper
1 T vodka
1 1/2 t Worcestershire sauce

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients and serve chilled.

Getting close to done.  Next up, salami wraps.  Here's another of my inventions.  Connie loves salami.  For some reason, I fried some - maybe to go in a grilled cheese?  Who knows.  All of the sudden it felt like a good idea to mix it with some whipped cream cheesa and chopped green olives and schmear it in some fresh salami.  The first year I made these for our holiday party they were inhaled.  Ditto the second year.  They're totally wicked so that's the only time we typically make them.  Guess what?  Connie requested them for this occasion.  I said what the heck, let's make them.

Salami Rolls

Ingredients:
4 oz cream cheese, whipped
1/2 c chopped green olives (fine with pimento)
4 oz salami, chopped and fried and drained
4 oz salami, thinly sliced

Directions:
Mix the cream cheese, green olives and salami.  Schmear about a teaspoon onto each slice of salami and roll it up.


Next to last, hard cooked eggs with anchovy crumbs.  I really wanted to make deviled eggs.  But, they're such a pain in the tookus to transport.  We've made this recipe a couple of times for our big holiday party and they've been very popular.  They'd be a wonderful alternative.

Hard Cooked Eggs with Anchovy Crumbs

Ingredients:
10 hard cooked eggs
1/4 c mayonnaise
1 anchovy fillet, finely minced
1/2 t garlic, finely minced
1T unsalted butter
2 anchovy fillets
1/2 t lemon zest
3/4 c panko

Directions:
Cut the eggs lengthwise into quarters.  Mix the mayonnaise, anchovy and garlic.  Melt the butter in a small skillet.  Add the 2 anchovies and stir until they melt into the butter.  Add the panko and stir until it's browned.  Stir in the lemon zest.  To serve, dollop a bit of the mayonnaise on each egg.  Sprinkle with the panko crumbs. 


Almost done.  Chicken salad.  For years and years I made Ernie and Sue Kobets type chicken salad.  They're the wonderful folks who own the Illinois Street Food Emporium.  Some of the best food in the city.  Just wish it was closer.  Ok, I shouldn't wish that.  I'd blow my budget and calories on their fabulous croissants...  Then, one day I had the chicken salad at Patachou.  Nirvana.  I tried making my own version and found it was very easy and oh, so good.

Chicken Salad

Ingredients:
1 chicken, meat shredded
red grapes, halved
pecans, toasted and chopped
mayonnaise

Directions:
Since the size of chickens varies so much, it doesn't make sense to put measurements on this one.  You want to end up with a dense chicken salad.  It's the difference between chunks of chicken and shredded chicken. 

Last, but not least, we did an antipasto platter:

Right about now my friend Monet is probably reading this and wondering if I'm totally daft and have forgotten the desserts.  You see, I actually had some bar cookies left from the holiday party.  They've been in the freezer since then.  We're not big sweet eaters so we've not touched them.  We're still working on the box of mint meltaways from Marianne, the caramels and the amazing chocolate pretzels from Heather that were hostess gifts from the party.  I was going to make cheesecake dip to go with Pirouettes but decided this is my opportunity to clean out my freezer!  The desserts that were left over after the party - they left with Dr. John to go to his colleagues in the emergency room!

Hot Chicken Salad and Warm Mushroom Salad

Friday night was shopping night.  I know.  What an exciting date, huh?  Actually, truth be told, Connie and I just like being around each other.  So, grocery shopping is a fine date for us.  We're having company for dinner on Saturday so we had to get the provisions for that.  And, while we were doing that it made sense to buy a turkey on sale ($13.71 for a 26 pound turkey!!) along with green beans and broccoli for Thanksgiving at my brother's house and the groceries we'll need for the dishes we're taking to our friends Mary Kay and Andy's one evening next week.  A couple of evenings we'll be having something from the freezer since I need to get it cleaned out to make room for party food.  So, we needed some things for the sides those evenings. 

As usual, when I was at Sam's I picked up a rotisserie chicken.  $4.99 for a huge chicken that will make eight servings without the least bit of stretching.  A couple of weeks ago I made hot browns with a rotisserie chicken then we had the leftovers for lunches.  Hopefully, I'll get that post done this coming week.  We had a snafu with getting photos off the camera so I've had to stick to posting dishes whose photos were taken with the point and shoot. 

It was a bit chilly and I didn't want a huge production so I thought about a hot chicken salad.  Now, my mom makes a mean hot chicken salad.  But, my favorite of all time is from the Gooseberry Patch Taste of Autumn cookbook.  We first made it in December, 2006 and rated it a four star (out of five.)  Since then I've probably made it at least annually.  And, every time we ummm and ahhh over it.  This time I had some cheddar cheese that needed to be used up.  The recipe calls for topping the salad with shredded swiss cheese and potato chips.  I didn't have any potato chips.  But, I did have Cheezits.  Perfect substitution.  In fact, I liked it so well that I noted on the recipe to make it that way in the future!

So, as an aside here... When I try a recipe I write down the date and rating on the page in the cookbook.  I also write notes about substitutions or what I'd do differently next time.  The only thing I've not done is write a note in the front of each cookbook telling me where I got it.  This one was in a lovely gift shop somewhere.  I remember buying it and would recognize the shop but I have NO clue where said shop was... I also keep a log book of recipes I've tried from cookbooks.  That way I can find them in my collection.

While I was fixing the chicken salad, Connie was putting away groceries.  He brought up a box of mushrooms that needed to be used.  We were also running out of room between the turkey and a rack of lamb ribs that I'd taken out of the freezer to be smoked today and grilled with some bourbon barbecue sauce tomorrow..  What better way to have the mushrooms take up less room than to slice and saute them?  Once that got started, my mind wandered to a wonderful warm mushroom salad I'd made years ago.  Unfortunately, I've been scanning in my recipes and they're a mell of a hess.  I couldn't find the recipe.  So, I guessed.  Connie inhaled the salad so I must've guessed well :-)

Hot Chicken Salad
4 servings

Ingredients:
2 c cooked chicken, diced
2 c celery, diced
8 oz can diced water chestnuts, drained
1/2 c toasted pecans, chopped
1 c mayonnaise
1/2 t celery salt
2 T lemon juice
2 t dried onion
1 c shredded cheddar or swiss cheese
crushed Cheezits or potato chips

Directions:

Mix everything but the cheese and crunchy topping together. 

Spray an 8x8 casserole dish with cooking spray.  Spread the chicken salad in the casserole.  Top it with the shredded cheese and Cheezits or potato chips.  Bake it at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until it's bubbling. 

Warm Mushroom Salad

Ingredients:

16 oz box white button mushrooms, sliced
1 T olive oil
fresh baby spinach - about a cup per person
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
3 T white wine vinegar
1/2 t celery salt
1/4 t garlic
1/4 t celery seed
1/4-1/2 c finely grated Gruyere or Parmesan or Romano

Directions:

Saute the mushrooms in the olive oil.  They'll go from dry to very moist to dry again.  You want them to get to the second dry stage and actually start to brown a bit. 

Mound spinach on each salad plate.  Mix the salad dressing:  evoo, vinegar, celery salt, garlic and celery seed.  While the mushrooms are still very hot, divide them among the salad plates.  Drizzle with salad dressing and top with a tablespoon or two of grated cheese.  Serve warm.

Chutney Chicken and Pistachio Salad

$6.72.  That's what I spent on a new cookbook called Simple Suppers.  I told myself I have enough cookbooks and didn't need to buy one when we were at Sam's Club today.  But, I browsed through this one and found several good ideas and thought what the heck.  Let me digress by saying it's been a crazy week and weekend so simple and flavorful ideas really appealed to me Saturday afternoon.  Wednesday, I took off for Los Angeles.  My broker/dealer was having a women's conference.  Their first ever.  I was a speaker on the marketing and networking panel.  Probably because I'm so shy - lol.  Ok, probably not.  It's because I do a radio show and a ton of seminars on Social Security.  I know, you probably think hearing about that is like watching paint dry.  But, we're a bunch of geeks and we like to talk to each other about these things.  So, I got to LA and waited for my luggage.  And waited.  And waited.  Finally, just about the last bag out was mine.  Then, I hailed a cab and headed to Santa Monica. Now, I'm used to traveling with Connie.   Both my broker/dealer and the producers group I'm with encourage us to bring our spouses to events.  Not this time.  Women only.  Men weren't welcome for the most part.  So, I was schlepping the suitcase, my purse and a ten ton briefcase with all my Social Security notes and my laptop.  Ugh.  I got to the hotel and checked in and zoomed to my room and changed clothes and headed for the reception for Peggy Fleming.  Yes, that Peggy Fleming.  The ice skater.  She's totally lovely.  We were all assigned three other women to meet.  They worked really hard to find folks with similar interests that we didn't know.  Well, I got Amy who runs the radio show for Dean and Sarah who manages his office got me.  We all had a good laugh over that.  Thursday morning started really early.  There was a networking breakfast at 7:00 and I had to log onto the office to work well before the breakfast started.  I walked back into my room at 9:49 that evening.  Actually, let me confess that in between the end of the program and 9:49, NPC treated some of us to some wonderful sushi.  Salmon carpaccio with shaved truffle.  Yellowtail with chiles.  Crunchy tuna rolls.  Albacore tuna with avocado.  Oh, my, it was wonderful.  And, the company.  Just incredible. 

Friday morning it was back to work.   The conference lasted until about 1:30.  At that point, I schlepped all of my gear a couple of blocks up the street to NPC's office.  Now, let me show you my friend, Robin and the view from her office.

Now, let me ask you exactly how much work you'd get done if you had that view.  I know, me too.  Zero, zip, zilch.  How incredible is that?  My flight didn't take off until 10:30 pm so after I'd had an opportunity to visit with all my buddies, Robin and I took off on a tour.  We headed up to Topanga Canyon and THE valley.

 See the hummingbird?

Along the way, we met up with her hubby and son.  Andy decided he wanted to go with us to see the PLANES.  Wow!  When you're a little shaver, the planes are pretty darned exciting things!!  Is he a cutie or what? 

On our way out of the valley, Robin took me to In'N Out Burger.  YUM!  I landed at 6:00 am Saturday morning.  Very happy to be home and to see my sweetie and to get some sleep!!!  I crawled out of bed about late in the morning and dug into the office and got a lot done.  About the middle of the afternoon,  we realized that the play at Civic Theatre started at 5:00 and not the normal 7:00.  Time to get into panic mode.  We headed to Sam's, got home and unloaded that stuff then Connie went to the grocery and I started in.  I had an hour to put all the Sam's stuff away, make chili, prep sausage for sausage and kale lasagna, prep mushrooms for chicken/mushroom pot pie and figure out something for a really late lunch.  New cookbook to the rescue.  Didn't think I'd ever get back to that did you?  I know.  Connie says I'm like an ancient civilization:  BabbleOn...  Bada bing, bada boom. 

Turns out I'd bought a rotisserie chicken for the chicken and mushroom pot pie.  But, I only need half.  And, I had all the other ingredients on hand for this chicken salad.  I'd read the recipe on the way home and thought if I could get everything else done, I could quickly fix this.

What did we think?  Fantasic flavor.  I loved the mix of textures and flavors and colors.  I ate mine on a bed of lettuce and Connie wanted his slapped between two pieces of bread.  We both loved it.  Lana's will stay my go-to chicken salad.  But, this will absolutely be made on a regular basis.  There wasn't a single thing I'd change.

Chutney Chicken and Pistachio Salad
serves 4

Ingredients:

2 c diced chicken
1 lemon
1/2 c mayonnaise
1/4 c mango chutney
1 T dijon mustard
1 c seedless red grapes, halved or quartered (depending on their size)
2-3 stalks celery, chopped
1 small red onion, finely diced
1/3 c pistachios

Directions:

Mix the dressing.  In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, chutney, dijon mustard, 1 T of lemon juice and 1 t of lemon zest.  In a large bowl, combine the chicken, grapes, celery, onion and pistachios. 

Gently toss the chicken mixture with the dressing.  Serve on a bed of lettuce or in a sandwich. 

Lana's Chicken Salad

We're doing a month of mostly Food and Wine recipes.  It's proving to be a lot of fun.  A couple of years ago one of the cooking magazines revamped their layout and to publicize it they did a cook the issue challenge.  A dozen or more of us nationally actually cooked the whole issue.  The toughest challenge was the croissants.  I'm not a baker and don't really enjoy baking.  But, the end result was worth every bit of hassle.  There were a few recipes that we enjoyed so much we've made them again.  And, there are others I'd like to make again but they've just not fit into the menu.  All in all, it was a fantastic experience.  So, when I was selected by Foodbuzz to post at least four recipes a week inspired by Food and Wine, I seriously considered cooking the issue.  That was until I saw the table of contents and realized I'd never get more than 70 new recipes prepared in a month - particularly a month in which I have two business trips. 

Sunday, when I checked the fridge for leftovers that needed to be used up the most critical was half a rotisserie chicken.  My mind immediately went to Lana's chicken salad.  But, I checked the Food and Wine table of contents just to make sure I wasn't missing anything spectacular with chicken meat.  I wasn't.  For as many years as I can remember, I've made chicken salad like Ernie and Sue Kobet's at the Illinois Street Food Emporium.  They serve theirs in the most incredible croissants.  The salad has chicken, mandarin oranges and celery.  I usually add some crushed pineapple.  It's fantastic stuff.  Never say never but nuts in chicken salad are something that I've not usually used.  But, way back when Lana posted her chicken salad recipe, I drooled over it.  She added pecans.  Not just pecans, but pecans that had been toasted in a little butter.  Her husband, Bee Bop (don't you just love that name!!!) isn't a fan of fruit in chicken salad.  She'd not put it in but did mention that you could add red grapes. 

While I worked on Sunday dinner, Connie took the chicken over to the bar and picked it clean.  He actually shredded the meat, which was perfect.   I had the pecans toasting away in the butter until they were wonderfully fragrant.  He cleaned and halved the grapes, then I put the whole thing together.  It was so gosh-darn good that I added a little serving to each of our dinners.  Then, Monday morning I didn't have my slice of happiness, I had chicken salad.  We had it for lunch on Monday too.  Wow, that was fantastic stuff!!!  Thank you so much, Lana.  If you all get an opportunity, hike on over to her blog where she's got a lot of other wonderful recipes:  Never Enough Thyme.

Lana's Chicken Salad


Ingredients:
1/2 rotisserie chicken
handful pecans
2 t butter
1 c red or green grapes, halved
1/2 finely diced celery
mayonnaise to taste

Melt the butter in a small skillet. 

Add the pecans. 

While the're getting wonderfully toasty and fragrant in the butter, shred the chicken and halve the grapes. 

Toss everything together and add mayonnaise to taste.

adapted from Never Enough Thyme 

Hot Chicken Salad

Mom's having some of her friends over for lunch next week.  She said she'd like to have chicken salad but is kind of tired of the same old chicken salad.  I said there's one that I make a couple of times a year that's just different enough.  Of course I make a little change to it.  I add some curry powder.  Even those who profess to not like curry tend to like this.

Hot Chicken Salad
2 c. cooked and diced chicken breast
2 c of diced celery
1/2 small onion, finely diced
8 oz can of diced water chestnuts
1/2 c toasted and chopped pecans
3/4 c mayonnaise
1/2 t celery seed
2 T lemon juice
1 t curry powder
3/4 c shredded swiss cheese
handful of potato chips

Toss the chicken, celery, onion, water chestnuts and pecans in a bowl.  In a small bowl, mix the dressing ingredients (mayo, celery seed, lemon juice and curry powder.)  Fold the dressing into the salad.  Pour the salad into a baking dish.  8x8 is best.  Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top.  Crush the potato chips and sprinkle them over the top of the cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until bubbly.

adapted from Taste of Autumn by Gooseberry Patch