Tropical Chicken Salad

I mentioned in this post that I had once had chicken salad that had bananas in it. I received a lot of responses from people who had never heard of such a thing, but they don’t call me “the memory machine” for nothing, so I immediately started to dig. I went through piles of my mother’s recipes, cookbooks I had inherited from a friend, cookbooks that I inherited from my grandmother, and piles of recipes that I had accumulated on my own ever since setting up housekeeping back when dinosaurs roamed the earth; eventually I found it. I have no idea as to the source other than to say it’s from “family friend Lorraine.” Personally, I think this chicken salad is magnificent. It is so different from the kind of chicken salad that is routinely served. It is indeed tropical and refreshing; light yet complex, and fruity with just the right amount of spice, making this version uniquely delicious.

 Tropical Chicken Salad

2 c. cubed cooked chicken*

1 c. chopped celery

¾-1 c. Duke’s mayonnaise

1-1½ t. curry powder

Seasoned salt, to taste

White pepper, to taste

1 c. Melissa’s organic pineapple, cubed, drained**

1 large firm banana, sliced (I cubed mine)

1 14-oz. can mandarin oranges, drained**

½ c. sweetened shredded coconut

¾ c. cashew halves or macadamias

 Place cooked and cubed chicken and celery into a large bowl. In a separate, smaller bowl, combine mayonnaise and curry powder; add to chicken mixture and mix well. Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes.

 Just before serving, fold in the pineapple, bananas, oranges and coconut; toss gently. Serve on salad greens, if desired. Sprinkle with nuts.

*Preheat oven to 350° F. Place breasts of chicken on a low-sided baking pan (read: jelly roll pan), rub with olive oil and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.  Bake for 35 to 55 minutes until chicken is done and juices run clear. The reason for the wide range of roasting times is because the length of cooking depends upon the thickness of your chicken breast. Remove chicken from the oven, allow to cool, remove skin and cut chicken into neat little cubes; set aside.

**Drain! Drain! Drain! Put them in a salad spinner if need be. Too much moisture will make the dish watery.

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Asian Lettuce Wraps

In the same way that I had never tried ramen before (and I told you about that in the post here), believe it or not, I'd never eaten lettuce wraps before either. I know, I know, this probably makes me weird, but it is what it is. Fortunately, I've now rectified that with this amazing recipe, by Food Network’s Sunny Anderson. This is the first Sunny Anderson recipe that I've ever tried, but it is certainly not going to be the last. These were absolutely delicious! I'm not going to lie to you, they're messy, but the taste is well worth the mess.

I adapted her recipe by adding some vegetables, grating and adding carrots and finely minced yellow pepper, not just for color, but also for taste and to add a little vegetable nutrition. This is going to become a regular staple around here, particularly during the summer when I want something lighter to eat, but don't want to sacrifice flavor. I can't recommend these highly enough. And now, I guarantee you I'm going to be trying many other versions of lettuce wraps. I'm hooked! 

Asian Lettuce Wraps

Adapted from Sunny Anderson

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 pound ground beef

2-inch piece ginger, peeled and finely grated

2 scallions, chopped

1 carrot, grated

½ cup minced yellow pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/4 cup hoisin sauce

1/4 cup chopped peanuts

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 head Boston lettuce, leaves separated, cleaned and dried

In a skillet over medium-high heat, add the vegetable oil and sauté beef until brown. Stir in ginger, scallions, carrot, yellow pepper, garlic, soy sauce, red pepper flakes, and hoisin and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the peanuts. Season with salt and pepper and serve warm wrapped in lettuce cups.

This post is linked to:

O My Heartsie Girls Wonderful Wednesday
 Homestead Wednesday

Wow Us Wednesday

Wine’d Down Wednesday

Moonlight and Mason Jars
Full Plate Thursday

Thursday Favorite Things,
Home Sweet Home
Weekend Linky Party
Grace at Home

Coffee and Conversation
Foodie Friday & Everything Else
Share Your Style

Simple Saturday Blog Hop

Share It One More Time
A Bouquet of Talent

Paula's No Rules Weekend Blog Party

Baby Greens, Pear, Walnut, and Blue Cheese Salad

This combination of tastes is a real winner. It made for the perfect light dinner last evening. Next time, for color and a hint of sweetness, I think I'll add a sprinkling of dried cranberries (I was pleased to see the trio of cranberry plants that I put in last year are returning this spring so maybe one of these days I'll have my own fresh cranberries!). The fresh thyme used in the dressing is one of the few things currently available in the garden. 


Baby Greens, Pear, Walnut, and Blue Cheese Salad

Bon Appetit September 2002

Hot and Hot Fish Club, Birmingham, AL

Yield: Makes 6 first-course servings

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 medium shallot, minced

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

1/2 cup olive oil

1 5-ounce bag mixed baby greens

2 large ripe pears, halved, cored, thinly sliced lengthwise

1 cup crumbled blue cheese

1 cup walnuts, toasted, coarsely chopped

Whisk first 4 ingredients in small bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in oil. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.

Toss greens in large bowl with enough dressing to coat. Divide greens among 6 plates. Top with pear slices, dividing equally. Sprinkle with cheese and walnuts. Drizzle lightly with remaining dressing and serve.


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Mocha-Chip Meringues

Amazingly easy and intensely good, this Martha Stewart recipe yields 48 light-as-air cookies that won't last so feel free to gobble them up with reckless abandon.

I seriously have a category in my giant, weighs a ton, three-ring-binder of a cookbook that is called "Quick, Easy, Chocolate." No kidding.  I like to get right to the heart of the matter.  When I want chocolate, I want it now!  And I don't want to have to dig for obscure ingredients, or fuss with utensils.  I want to be able to open one (maybe two) cabinet doors, get the job done, and be able to pop one into my mouth as soon as the coffee has finished brewing.  Okay these do take a little bit longer than that, but I used my time wisely -- while they were baking I made another cookie dough that will make an appearance here later in the week -- but they are well worth it.  Imagine a chocolate cloud and you pretty much get the idea as to what you can expect from this cookie.  Try them, you will not be disappointed.

MOCHA-CHIP MERINGUES

3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
3 large egg whites, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder*
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 300 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together sugar and cornstarch; set aside.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat egg whites and salt on medium speed until frothy. Beating constantly, add sugar mixture 1 tablespoon at a time; beat until stiff, glossy peaks form, 6 to 8 minutes total (scrape down the bowl halfway through). Add espresso powder and cocoa; beat until well blended. With a rubber spatula, fold in chocolate chips.

Drop batter by level tablespoons onto prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart. Bake until crisp, about 40 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Cool completely on sheets, about 20 minutes.

*I used Medaglia d'Oro and make it a habit to always keep a small jar on hand.

Thanks, Martha!