Chicken Salad {Honey + Cranberries + Pecans + Celery}

I am forever bookmarking “Summer’s Greatest Salads!” postings on websites and blogs, and tearing them out of magazines, and excitedly putting them aside for the next time I am in the mood. And then, of course, I promptly forget about them, or do not have the ingredients on hand when I need them, and I always end up going back to my old faithful recipes. The “20 Best Salads for Summer” always look so fresh, bright, healthy, and adventuresome. In my “Recipes to Try” pile.

This month’s Cooking Club was the first I hosted in my new apartment. Because I get such great daylight (and haven’t, um… bought a floor lamp for my living room yet… after 3 months…) I wanted a day-time theme. So this month, I chose to highlight several summer salads, with the goal of getting at least a few on my radar and into the rotation.

This Chicken Salad was the recipe I selected, because I thought it would be the most practical to actually make for myself on a regular basis. I mean, the Crab & Avocado Salad with Ginger Vinaigrette would probably be delicious, but who has extra lump crab in the house when it is time to put together lunch to bring to the office the next day? The Chicken Salad delivered.

The honey was what originally intrigued me with this recipe, and it added a little “hmmm” (and “yummm”) factor, while the celery provided healthy crunch and texture. The pecans and cranberries boosted the flavor and made the chicken salad taste hearty and rich. I am not really a mayonnaise person – but I do enjoy it when I make my own, which I did in this case. Stay tuned for a tutorial on how to make your own mayonnaise, using the barest of ingredients, in a future post! Knowing what went in the recipe for mayonnaise makes me see feel better about eating it. I wavered between tagging this recipe as “healthy” or “not un-healthy,” and landed on “healthy.” It’s not a pile of kale, but it’s only filled with good, whole ingredients. Chicken salads are so easy to make, and healthy and filling – be on the lookout for more from me in future posts!

Chicken Salad {Honey, Cranberries, Pecans, & Celery}

A healthy and easy lunch

Author: myutensilcrock.com

Ingredients

3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped (I poached mine, but you can also use leftover roasted chicken or rotisserie chicken)
3 stalks celery, diced
½ c pecans, chopped and toasted
½ c dried cranberries
⅓ c honey
¾ c mayonnaise
¼ t kosher salt
¼ t freshly ground pepper

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine the chicken, celery, pecans, and cranberries.
In a small bowl, stir together the honey, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper.
Pour the honey mixture over the contents of the large bowl, and stir to distribute.