“Chicken salad has a certain glamour about it. Like the little black dress, it is chic and adaptable anywhere.”  Laurie Colwin

What one thing can you do this week to make a positive deposit in your health?

Solomon’s daily provisions were thirty cors of fine flour and sixty cors of meal, ten head of stall-fed cattle, twenty of pasture-fed cattle and a hundred sheep and goats, as well as deer, gazelles, roebucks and choice fowl.  (I Kings 4:22-23; NIV)

Continuing with our picnic theme this month, today’s recipe highlights chicken salad.  Most people enjoy chicken salad and many people have a favorite recipe.  I can still recall the first time I had “gourmet” chicken salad on a fresh croissant at an upscale restaurant in downtown Rochester, New York.  I’m not sure if the elegance of the surroundings made it so memorable or if the chicken salad really was that good.  Chicken salad can be simple and it can be elegant. 

According to Wikipedia, chicken salad was first made by Liam Gray in the New England state of Rhode Island in the late 1800s. His original recipe consisted of leftover chicken, chicken drippings, an oil/egg mixture and small seedless grapes.  In one form, diced or shredded chicken (dark or white meat, or a combination of both) is dressed with mayonnaise, mustard , or sour cream. Fruits and vegetables may be added such as diced onions, bell peppers, celery, grapes, or apples. Some cooks add other seasonings, which might include curry powder or dill pickles.

I’ve varied the ingredients I’ve used in chicken salad throughout the years.  A few years ago, I discovered the delight of adding curry powder to chicken salad.  If you enjoy the taste of curry powder, you’ll like the distinctive flavor it brings to chicken salad.  Grapes add sweetness to the salad and pecans add a nice crunch.

As a side note, I always try and buy organically grown grapes as commercial grapes, especially imported ones are sprayed heavily with pesticides.    If you can’t locate organic grapes, then wash the grapes with a produce wash found in health food stores or in your local grocery store.  I use one called Bi-O-Kleen Concentrated Produce Wash.

Prayer Power
We thank You Lord for Your wonderful provision for us each and every day.  We thank You that Your mercies are new every morning.

Link of the Day
Curried Chicken Salad

Blessings on you as you enjoy some chicken salad.