Extra Special Chicken Salad

"I had a pocket burger for lunch today and it was good. What did you have for lunch today?" A sweet student asked me. Anyone who comes into the beginning of my last class of the day may think we are not learning, but education is indeed occurring. I have many students who are refugees from around the world and practicing language is something we must do. It is no surprise that my students know lots of names for food since it is one of my favorite things to talk about. 

"I had chicken salad for lunch today and it was good." This little boy is from Thailand and has never experienced chicken salad. His adorable little head cocked to the side in confusion as  explained what was in it.

This recipe is loosely based on the kind of chicken salad my grandma made. The secret ingredient is the chicken base. It adds a really concentrated salty and chicken flavor I love. The fruit and nuts give it a great crunch and make it an extra special lunch.

Ingredients

Salad

2 cups of cubed or shredded chicken (I like white meat, but what you have will work)

1/2 crisp apple, chopped

1/4 almonds, chopped

2 stalks of celery, chopped

8 spears of asparagus, trimmed and chopped

Dressing

1 teaspoon chicken base

2 tablespoons Italian salad dressing

1 tablespoon water

1/3 cup miracle whip or mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon pepper

With a fork or a small whisk, combine the chicken base, Italian salad dressing and water together. The water makes it easy to break up the chicken base. I like to use the paste textured chicken base, but the powdered is also great. After the chicken base is well blended, add in the remaining ingredients making sure it is well combined.

Mix all the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Make sure everything is chopped to be about the same size.

Pour the dressing over the salad ingredients and mix this really well. Let this sit for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator to chill. I love to serve this over a bed of mixed greens with some crackers as a delicious lunch. Try this out soon, you will love it!