Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank.
All I can think to serve is chicken salad. Too boring?


Becca

On Fri, 03 Apr 2009 14:54:23 -0500, Becca > wrote:

>Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank.
>All I can think to serve is chicken salad. Too boring?

How about a chicken-toasted pecan salad with cold asparagus spears.
How about curried chicken salad served in a phyllo cup? Fresh
pineapple slices with banana muffins would make a great lunch.

On Apr 3, 3:54*pm, Becca > wrote:
> Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank. *
> All I can think to serve is chicken salad. *Too boring?
>
> Becca

Chicken salad is a great idea (I love it personally) - you can make it
ahead and it tastes better that way, too!

It's only as boring as you want it to be. Try adding some curry
powder, a hint of honey and some halved red grapes to it. For
texture, add celery or toasted nuts.

Another way I've had it is served in lettuce cups, which makes for a
fun presentation, plus adds a nice crunch.

Add some nice cut fruit and a good roll/bread,and you'll have a very
good "guest lunch".

Have fun,
Kris

Kris wrote:
>
> On Apr 3, 3:54 pm, Becca > wrote:
> > Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank.
> > All I can think to serve is chicken salad. Too boring?
> >
(snip)
> For texture, add celery or toasted nuts.

Toasted almond slivers in chicken salad is so very good. If adding
toasted nuts, I recommend adding those at the very last moment when the
salad gets served. My experience has been they'll lose their crunch and
get 'soggy' if the nuts are included when the salad is made or any
significant time before serving (more than 1 or 2 hours??).

Sky

--
Ultra Ultimate Kitchen Rule - Use the Timer!
Ultimate Kitchen Rule -- Cook's Choice

Becca said...

> Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank.
> All I can think to serve is chicken salad. Too boring?


Becca,

Maybe put it on toast? With some optional avocado?

Best,

Andy

Andy wrote:
> Becca said...
>
>
>> Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank.
>> All I can think to serve is chicken salad. Too boring?
>>
>
>
> Becca,
>
> Maybe put it on toast? With some optional avocado?
>
> Best,
>
> Andy

Thanks everyone for your wonderful suggestions. Kris suggested making
it ahead, and I agree, it always tastes better the next day. The
chicken is cooked, the meat is off the bone, so I will run into the
kitchen and make chicken salad.


Thanks again.

Becca

In article >,
Becca > wrote:

> Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank.
> All I can think to serve is chicken salad. Too boring?
>
>
> Becca

You can do a LOT with chicken salad!
--
Peace! Om

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass.
It's about learning to dance in the rain.
-- Anon.

On Fri, 03 Apr 2009 20:54:16 -0600, Omelet wrote:

> In article >,
> Becca > wrote:
>
>> Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank.
>> All I can think to serve is chicken salad. Too boring?
>>
>> Becca
>
> You can do a LOT with chicken salad!

if you feel it's not elegant enough, you could make hoity-toity tea
sandwiches. ra-ther!

your crustless pal,
blake

On Sat, 04 Apr 2009 14:57:42 GMT, blake murphy
> wrote:

>On Fri, 03 Apr 2009 20:54:16 -0600, Omelet wrote:
>
>> In article >,
>> Becca > wrote:
>>
>>> Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank.
>>> All I can think to serve is chicken salad. Too boring?
>>>
>>> Becca
>>
>> You can do a LOT with chicken salad!
>
>if you feel it's not elegant enough, you could make hoity-toity tea
>sandwiches. ra-ther!
>
The subject of pickled beans came up in ba.food... which made me think
of Salade Nicoise. I've actually eaten it with seared tuna (instead
of canned tuna) the way it's pictured here and it's delicious
http://frenchfood.about.com/od/salads/r/tunanicoise.htm


Salade Niçoise
From: Julia's Kitchen Wisdom, by Julia Child.

Of all main-course salads, the Niçoise is my all-time favorite, with
its fresh butter-lettuce foundation; its carefully cooked, beautifully
green beans; its colorful contrast of halved hard-boiled eggs, ripe
red tomatoes, and black olives; all fortified by chunks of tuna fish
and freshly opened anchovies. It's a perfect luncheon dish, to my
mind, winter, summer, spring, and fall — an inspired combination that
pleases everyone.

Ingredients:

1 large head Boston-lettuce leaves, washed and dried
1 pound green beans, cooked and refreshed
1-1/2 tablespoons minced shallots
1/2 to 2/3 cup basic vinaigrette
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 or 4 ripe red tomatoes, cut into wedges (or 10 to 12 cherry
tomatoes, halved)
3 or 4 "boiling" potatoes, peeled, sliced, and cooked
Two 3-ounce cans chunk tuna, preferably oil-packed
6 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and halved
1 freshly opened can of flat anchovy fillets
1/3 cup small black Niçoise-type olives
2 to 3 tablespoons capers
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Instructions:

Arrange the lettuce leaves on a large platter or in a shallow bowl.
Shortly before serving, toss the beans with the shallots, spoonfuls of
vinaigrette, and salt and pepper. Baste the tomatoes with a spoonful
of vinaigrette. Place the potatoes in the center of the platter and
arrange a mound of beans at either end, with tomatoes and small mounds
of tuna at strategic intervals. Ring the platter with halves of
hard-boiled eggs, sunny side up, and curl an anchovy on top of each.
Spoon more vinaigrette over all; scatter on olives, capers, and
parsley, and serve.

Yield: Serves 6


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

blake murphy wrote:
> On Fri, 03 Apr 2009 20:54:16 -0600, Omelet wrote:
>
>
>> In article >,
>> Becca > wrote:
>>
>>
>>> Tomorrow, I am having a visitor over for lunch and my mind is blank.
>>> All I can think to serve is chicken salad. Too boring?
>>>
>>> Becca
>>>
>> You can do a LOT with chicken salad!
>>
>
> if you feel it's not elegant enough, you could make hoity-toity tea
> sandwiches. ra-ther!
>
> your crustless pal,
> blake
>

Well, I am not very hoity-toity, but it sounds good.


Lunch turned out very well. We had chicken salad, served with toasted
walnuts sprinkled on top (I was so afraid I would burn the nuts like I
did last time lol). The chicken salad was served on a plate of salad
greens with sliced tomatoes on one side and sliced cucumbers on the
other. I had two salad dressings, both of them were already made. I
served these on the cucumbers and the tomatoes. One was a key lime
dressing, the other was oil & vinegar with a little sugar, onion and
mustard.


For dinner, he cooked a pork stir fry and I made fried rice. She stood
next to me, watching me cook the fried rice, saying, "I thought Chinese
restaurants used a brown rice, but the color comes from soy sauce", I
guess Nancy does not cook Asian food at home.


For breakfast, we had scrambled eggs, bacon, biscuits (for her) and
fresh fruit with a poppyseed dressing. It was so nice to have her here,
I enjoyed the visit.


Becca