Chicken Apple Salad Tea Sandwiches

My friend Debbie and are planning to host a tea later this year, so we ordered several sample-size packages of tea from Tea Embassy in Austin, Texas . 

We're looking, in particular, for dessert teas, which is why so many in the picture are fruity.

Of course, one can't simply sip tea after tea without something to eat, so we put together our own little informal tea party.

Tea for two, if you will.

Debbie brought some delicious cream scones.

Trust me, I'll be hounding her for the recipe for these babies.

Since we're thinking fall for our tea, I made some miniature spice cake cupcakes.

With cream cheese frosting, of course.

But we needed a savory. Something, preferably with apples and maybe a hint of spice. So I grabbed an apple, pulled a leftover grilled chicken breast out of the fridge and set to work.

When you're talking miniature food, these big ol slices of chicken just won't do, so I chopped them up fairly fine.

Then I tossed the chicken into a bowl and set to work on the apple, chopping it into tiny pieces, also.

I added the apple to the chicken, along with about a half teaspoon of cinnamon (because cinnamon goes very well with apples), and stirred everything together.

Next, I chopped up some toasted pecans and added those, along with approximately three tablespoons of mayonnaise. You're welcome to add more if you like, I just didn't want the mayo to overpower all of the other flavors.

Now for the sandwiches. But what if there was something we could do in leu of sandwiches. Something small and fun. I had some frozen phyllo cups, so I filled four of those. But since I still had plenty of chicken salad left over, I decided to do a few sandwiches for comparison purposes. One might taste better than the other.

They were both delicious, but Debbie and I agreed that the phyllo cups were just a tad better. Maybe because they were out of the ordinary.

Over the next two hours, Debbie and I ate, sipped tea and talked until our jaws hurt. Some of the teas were hits, others not so much. This is why the small packages are so nice. And we set a date for our tea. The next mission--come up with a menu. You know that'll be fun.

Have you ever hosted a tea? What are some of your favorite bite-sized morsels?

Three time Carol Award finalist Mindy Obenhaus lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, the youngest of her five children and two dogs. She passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. When she's not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more a mindyobenhaus.com.

A Most Unusual Chicken Salad

Missy Tippens

Who loves chicken salad? I do! Which is why I had to try this recipe.

When I check out recipes, I usually save them to Pinterest and go back to them later if I ever think of them again. But sometimes, I find a recipe that I go ahead and print because I know I definitely want to make it. This was one of those.

Chicken Salad with Apricots, Celery and Blue Cheese
By Anna Stockwell at Epicurious.com (click here for the recipe)

I won't share the whole recipe. You can get it at the website. But quickly... I shredded a rotisserie chicken. Added sliced celery and salt and let it sit.

Then we made a dressing out of buttermilk, honey, vinegar, salt and pepper. I love my little salad dressing whisker from Pampered Chef.

Once all that is mixed together, we added the rest of the ingredients--fresh apricots, fresh mint, blue cheese, and celery leaves.

It made a really good salad with nice crunch! I think I might make it with feta cheese next time. As much as I love blue cheese, the cheese we bought was a little overpowering.

If you give it a try, I hope you enjoy it!


www.missytippens.com

How Many Ways Can You Do Chicken Salad?

Missy Tippens

We went to visit my in-laws down in south Georgia earlier this week. I kept wanting to take photos to show you of the huge trees, mainly live oaks, draped in Spanish moss. So very southern! Alas, we were usually driving and couldn't stop.

While out of town, I didn't do any cooking that I could share today. However, my husband's parents took us to a new restaurant that we really enjoyed! I wanted to share the unique menu. They sell...

Chicken salad. A huge variety to chicken salad! (Plus side dishes and pimento cheese, soups, etc.)

The place is called Chicken Salad Chick, and it was started by a stay-at-home mom who loved chicken salad and was always looking for the perfect recipe. The restaurant has really taken off! You may even have a location near you soon.

You can check out the menu here if you'd like to get ideas for some great chicken salad recipes. There are categories such as traditional, savory, fruity & nutty, and spicy.

I chose one that had dried cranberries and slivered almonds. And I also got a scoop of pimento cheese just because I couldn't decide between the two. :) They were SO GOOD! 

For my side dish, I got the broccoli salad. I'm sure y'all have probably had this at a covered dish (potluck) dinner sometime. It's one of my favorites--yet I've still never made it.

Fresh broccoli in a sweet dressing, bacon, and cheese. This one didn't seem to have raisins like I'm used to, however the sweetness came from the dressing.

At my in-laws house we also had some good ol' Georgia peaches from a local farmer's market--Mark's Melon Patch (which I think I've posted about before).

So, the big question today...

What's your favorite chicken salad? Are you a traditionalist? Or do you go crazy with fruit, nuts or spice? Be sure to check out that menu for some great ideas!


www.missytippens.com

Don't forget about Missy's latest novella!

His Summer Valentine

Stretching Your Leftover Chicken

by Missy Tippens

Last weekend, I made one of our favorites, pasta Alfredo with chicken. (Similar recipe here only I used fresh chicken this time) After I cooked the chicken, I pulled out the equivalent of about one chicken breast to save for another meal. My daughter and I decided we wanted to make chicken salad for lunch one day this week.

But then I pulled out that bowl and saw this tiny amount.

Hmmm. Well, we had already decided we wanted to add grapes to our chicken salad, so I decided to go for it and just add a LOT of grapes. :)

1 or 2 cooked chicken breasts, shredded or cubed
1/3 cup mayo (approx)
Grapes (cut large ones in half)
1/4 cup nuts (pecans or walnuts), chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped (we didn't use that because my hubby cannot stand it!)
1-2 TBS finely chopped sweet onion (like a Vidalia--which I didn't have on hand at the moment so skipped this also)
salt and pepper to taste

First, I didn't have plain walnuts, so I used glazed walnuts--which are sweet. I thought that would be good with the grapes. [Note: It was a little too much sweet. Next time I'll use plain walnuts or good ol' pecans.] Also, I was in a hurry so didn't cut up the grapes. It worked just fine.

If you'll notice here in this photo, I almost had more grapes than chicken. :)

Mix all ingredients together. Then season to taste. We decided we wanted our chicken salad on croissants. We love it that way! And we ended up having enough for 3 generous sandwiches. So we managed to stretch that one chicken breast to feed both of us plus my husband for lunch the next day. :)

Enjoy!

Oh! Come check out this chance to win free books! I'm taking part of an inspirational romance giveaway which includes a Kindle Fire and 40+ books. Only 3 more days of the contest, so don't miss out. Click here to enter.

Click on the photo to enlarge and see the books being given away.

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No Ordinary Weekend - No Ordinary Chicken Salad

It's been an interesting few days around the Obi house. Strange happenings is a goin' on. Okay, not so strange, but definitely out of the ordinary. 

First, I drove to Oklahoma Friday to see my grandsons and help my daughter, Amy, with a workshop she was putting on Saturday. Thanks to a wreck that shut down the interstate, what was normally a 2.5 hour trip turned into 4 hours. After an hour in traffic that was either at a dead stop or a pathetic crawl, I was never so glad to get moving again. Or to see a rest area. (I knew I should have stopped at one cup of tea before heading out)

At any rate, as I finally made my way into Oklahoma, the Arbuckle Mountains greeted me with a fantastic view. 

Yeah, I know. They're not really mountains. But they're still pretty.

That night, I had pizza and cupcakes with my grandsons. Elijah prefers his cupcakes with a little something extra, though.

Frogs and cupcakes. 

Definitely a boy thing.

Saturday morning, Amy and I set off for the community center where she was teaching a workshop on distressing furniture. I was so proud of her. Everyone had a great time and I can't wait to try out some of the techniques I learned.

Imagine taking this $10 garage sale find...

To this...

in just a few hours. 

Remember the ornate plastic wood-look furniture from the 70's?

Before on the left, after on the right.

Love the transformation.

The workshop included lunch. 

Pasta salad, fruit salad, chicken salad (do you detect a theme here?) and sandwich fixings. Oh, and cupcakes. Gotta have cupcakes. 

But, for once, I don't want to talk about cupcakes, I want to talk about chicken salad. Chicken salad is one of those things that is so easy to change up and make just about any way you like. So this is just one version of mine. 

I made this for hubby's and my lunch earlier last week. 

We had a partially picked over rotisserie chicken in the fridge, so I picked that sucker clean, chopped up the meat and added some finely chopped celery and onion. He hates celery, so I have to hide it.

Chopped up apple is also a nice addition for a hint of sweetness, but since I was out of apples...

Next, I added some mayo, sour cream and Dijon mustard. Why Dijon? I like the taste better than regular mustard. Not as harsh.

Stir that all together. Add a little salt and pepper.

Then, in a nonstick skillet over medium heat, I toasted some sliced almonds.

And added them to the mix for a nice crunch.

Lastly, I squeezed the juice of half a lemon over the whole thing and stirred one more time.

Ta-da!

Some other great additions would be grapes, dried cranberries... Cranberries also add a nice pop of color. Mine is a little monochromatic. But tasty, nonetheless.

My trip back to Texas was much smoother and I made it back before the rains set in. Yesterday, my sister-in-law informed us of flooding at the ranch.

This is the entrance to our camphouse.

Fortunately, the houses are all on high ground, so all should be well. We'll just have to wade in.

Now it's your turn. 

Have you ever distresses/re-purposed furniture? 

What's your favorite chicken salad? 

Fruity Chicken Salad

with Missy Tippens

I thought I'd share a new yummy chicken salad recipe with y'all today. The original recipe is Trisha Yearwood's Food Network recipe called Billie's Houdini Chicken Salad.

Here's my version…

3-4 chicken breasts--skinless, boneless

1-½ cups plain Greek yogurt (I used 2 small containers but probably needed a third)

1 cup seedless grapes, cut in half if they're large (mine were small, so less work!) :)

½ cup roasted, salted almonds, chopped

½ cup roasted, salted pecans, chopped

½ cup dried cranberries

1 large apple, peeled and diced (I used a wonderful new apple I've discovered called Opal apples)

½ of a sweet or red onion, finely chopped (I used a Vidalia-type onion)

Drizzle of honey

Add chicken to boiling water and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Then remove from the pan and let it cool. 

While that simmers, do the prep work. First I washed the grapes. Then I realized I didn't have roasted nuts so tossed them with olive oil and kosher salt and roasted them. And believe it not, I didn't burn them!! (very rare) :)

Once chicken is cool, either dice or shred it. I diced but ended up kind of wishing it had been shredded.

Here's one of the Opal apples. I love them! They're sweet but not too sweet for those who like tart apples.

The nuts are done! Now chop them.

Once everything is chopped, stir in the yogurt, onion, apples, cranberries and nuts.

And don't forget the grapes! Drizzle with honey and then season with salt and pepper to taste.

A huge bowl of deliciousness.

The Greek yogurt makes a healthy version of chicken salad. But once I tasted it, I decided that maybe next time I would add a little mayonnaise for a bit more creaminess. I'm used to chicken salad with mayo so this felt like it was lacking a little something. Next time, I think I'll add a ½ cup mayo.

Serve on crackers or bread or my favorite--croissants. Enjoy!

www.missytippens.com

Chicken Salad Days With the Yank

Remember this stuff?

It's called "Snow".

We don't have any this year, so I thought I'd post this pic in fond remembrance of 2010, 09, and 08...

For those of you with snow, feel free to have a hot chocolate on the house today! Or coffee, latte', whatever you'd like. In honor of your shoveling, snowblowing, plowing moments, the Cafe is giving out free drinks to anyone in a 2012 snow belt!  You guys rock!

Okay, on to chicken salad. We have chickens for eggs. I don't eat our chickens. We have in the past, but now life's a little busy to be spending summers putting up chickens... (note how carefully I did not use the word "butchering" so as not to offend anyone. Yes, I'm that sensitive to my friends' delicate needs)

Anyway, I'm fussy about chicken salad, too. I don't use canned chicken because it's got bits of ...stuff in it. I use boneless skinless chicken breasts and I pop them right into the kettle from the freezer, no need to thaw because we'll trim off any of those 'bits' of vein, fat, cartilage once they're cooked. It's way easier then.


Simple ingredients:

2 or 3 quarts Water
Chicken base or bouillon cubes (amount depends on how much water you use, follow label directions)
2 (or more) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Celery, chopped
Salt, pepper to taste
Hellman's Mayonnaise

Easy-peasy, right?

Boil the chicken in the broth.  You can use the broth later to make chicken soup or as a base for some other soup stock. Remember that a lot of soup stocks blend chicken and beef to make a heartier broth. Yum!

When chicken is fully cooked (a fork will pierce it easily), remove from broth, rinse in cool water, and set aside to cool. Trim away any bits of fat, vein, cartilage until all you have left is white meat chicken. This is like a fifteen second job when chicken is cooked and you have a decent knife. Or you can borrow one of Missy's new knives. She's dangerous with them.

Chop up chicken. I like mine in small pieces but if you like chunks, that's fine. Add about 1/3-1/2 cup of chopped celery. Feel free to eat some while you chop, I love celery. If a few bits of celery leaf jump into the knife and then the bowl, this is perfectly okay, but not too many.

Add mayonnaise. Do this a little at a time to see how "moist" you want your salad. Tasting for quality control is encouraged.  Add salt and pepper to taste. We go heavy on the pepper (you might not need any salt because you boiled the chicken in a salt-water environment, very eco-friendly) and that flash of  heat brightens up the more bland taste of chicken.

I LOVE chicken salad on a lightly toasted buttered bagel, but if I'm low-carb I eat it on a bed of chopped lettuce and pray that my jeans will zipper the next week.

A side of broccoli/cabbage salad makes a nice "crunch" alongside the chicken chewiness.

I make this for Luke (finance boy in Boston) whenever he comes home. It was a favorite at Bridal Hall, too, the sweet bridal store where I sold wedding gowns for seven years.... Great family business and one of these days I will be doing a series with a bridal industry background, because it's HYSTERICAL...  you have no idea! I'm grinning, just thinking about it. Or maybe because my teeth really are too big for my head.

Whatever.

And I'm living a dual life right now because I'm working on a Christmas book.... While the world is morphing into Valentine's Day.  So I have to keep my head in "O Holy Night" while others are thinking "Lady in Red"...

:)

So if you hear rumors of Christmas music in Ruthy's house, they're all true!

This gratuitous pic is just to remind me of Christmas and how much I loved this cover on Matt and Callie's story.  Sigh...

And yes, that's a live link to take you straight to Amazon to get your own copy, LOL!