Crunchy Chicken Salad

     It has been sweltering hot here. When it is hot I do not wish to eat. Nothing sounds good, nothing looks good. I decided to try making some chicken salad. I remembered that my Grandma made chicken salad once from a recipe that came from the Hays House in Council Grove, Kansas. The Hays House is known for being the oldest continuous restaurant west of the Mississippi River. It was built in 1857. They serve all sorts of gluteny home cooked foods. (end of history lesson)
     I can't remember if Grandma asked the chef for the recipe, or if they have recipe cards available for purchase in the establishment. Either way, Grandma made their chicken salad and it was yummy. SO I decided to look online and see if I could come up with it...and low and behold I found the Hays House Crunchy Chicken Salad Recipe on the Kansas Magazine website.
     My recipe isn't exactly like their recipe, but it is inspired by their recipe for chicken salad. I hope you enjoy it.

Crunchy Chicken Salad

5 C. Cooked Chicken, cut into small pieces
1 1/2 C. Celery diced into small pieces
1 C. Pineapple tidbits, drained
1 C. Red Seedless Grapes, cut into halves
1/4 C. Toasted Pecan Pieces
Dressing:
1 C. Plain Greek Yogurt
1 C. Miracle Whip
1 tsp. Seasoning Salt

In a large bowl combine the chicken pieces, celery, pineapple, grapes, and toasted pecans. Mix until combined. In a small bowl combine the dressing ingredients together. Pour the dressing over the chicken mixture and mix until coated. Chill in the refrigerator.

Serve on bread for a sandwich, on lettuce for a salad, or with gluten free crackers.

Wash all the veggies and get ready for prep...it won't take long though

Dice the celery into small pieces

Cut the seedless red grapes into 1/2. If you are serving this to little kiddos, you may want to cut them into even smaller pieces so that they aren't a choking hazard.

Add the pineapple tidbits, I even cut them into 1/2, but you wouldn't have to.

Add the toasted pecans. (to toast nuts, bake at 350 for 5-10 min. until slightly browned and have a toasted flavor. Watch them carefully so they do not burn)

Cut the chicken into small chunks.

Combine the dressing ingredients.

Mix the dressing into the other ingredients until everything is well coated with yummyness.

Serve well chilled with gluten free crackers.

I hope you enjoy my chicken salad recipe. I tried to make it a little more "healthy" by using greek yogurt instead of sour cream. Also, it is something that won't heat up the house too much during this intense heat wave we have been going through. Oh, and it also tastes pretty darn good! Enjoy.

-Jessica