Great dinners followed by great cocktails made for a struggling Monday. But here we are. Only 5 days until the weekend AND it's finally fall this week. That just means I'm more than justified in putting up my fall decor all while sipping something pumpkin flavored.
This recipe is inspired by my love for making food I can eat for days after. Bringing left overs for lunch is so much more enjoyable than eating a larabar. I found the original recipe from Eating Bird Food. Brittany is AMAZING and blogs some incredible recipes. She doesn't cook exclusively paleo, but her recipes are always leaning towards the healthy side and DELICIOUS. Her recipe for the chicken salad is here.
Below you'll see I switched it up a little for our taste preferences and to follow paleo.
Before we start can we talk about shredding chicken. It's in this recipe (spoiler alert) and as much as I love eating it. I hate it. I hate it so much that when I make bets with Adam on sports and random crap, I tell him that if I win, he has to shred the chicken.
And, the thing that really bugs me, is in recipes it's hidden in the instructions. Do this that this that shred chicken. No-one accounts for the 25 minutes it takes to shred 3 chicken breasts with 2 forks. My hands cramp, I start to sweat and I lose all interest.
Rant over, I made Adam shred the chicken last night.
The best part about this recipe is there is NO mayo! Hallelujah! We don't really do mayo in our house unless I can hide it in something so Adam doesn't know it's there. I found this great paleo mayo at Target and its delish so if I have to, I use that. Just please don't tell Adam I sneak mayo in some things!
Let's get to the recipe!
Ingredients:
- 4 cups shredded chicken (this is about two large breasts)
- 6 tablespoons almond butter
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups celery, chopped
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 1/2 cup onion, diced (use red if you can, but yellow is good too!)
- Butter lettuce, bread or wraps to eat it with. Or a fork. Let's be real, it's that's good.
- Shred the dang chicken. Get this part out of the way. (To make shredded chicken, place chicken in a saute pan. Cover the chicken with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce and let simmer. Takes about 25 minutes. Flip the chicken half way through.)
- Make the dressing. Mix the almond butter, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, mustard and salt. Taste it. Last night, ours tasted too much like almond butter, so I added a little more apple cider vinegar and a titch of salt. This is up to your taste buds!
- In a large bowl, mix the chicken, celery, cranberries, almonds and onion. Don't be afraid to add other things. I used some seeds last night. I even thought about adding red cabbage.
- Wait to toss the salad with the dressing until ready to eat. Toss, serve, enjoy!
Look at all those colors! So delish!
Look at those devil forks. jkjk.
But shameless plug to follow me on snap to follow my recipes! @Kgrace01
Happy Monday! Here's to a productive weeks, delicious recipes and lots of love.
I have been needing a new chicken salad recipe to give it a little pick up to the ordinary recipes. Thanks for sharing this!
ReplyDeleteWhat a delicious and healthy meal
ReplyDeleteOmg can M we say yum yum?!?! This salad looks absolutely delicious. Must try!
ReplyDeleteThis recipe looks like something my family would enjoy. It's artical like this that make me realize why I love reading blogs. Easy to follow instructions and looks amazing.
ReplyDeleteThis recipe looks like something my family would enjoy. It's artical like this that make me realize why I love reading blogs. Easy to follow instructions and looks amazing.
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh!!!! This chicken salad sounds amazing! Saving this recipe. :)
ReplyDeleteI also hate mayo, so this looks so good!
ReplyDeleteChicken salad is my go-to lunch option as it's easy to prepare and carry. My recipe varies just a bit from this one, but this is a great option to try.
ReplyDeletePinned this!
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I started the Whole30 yesterday and I made a chicken salad today for lunch, mixed with avocado, and pico de gallo. So good! This is definitely one I'll be making too!