Chicken Salad For An Endless Summer Recipes

JEFF'S FAMOUS CHICKEN SALAD CROISSANT

Steps:

• In a large Dutch oven or pot, stir 1 tablespoon salt into 6 cups cold water. Add the chicken and heat over medium heat until the water hits a temperature of 170 degrees F. Take the pot off the heat, cover, and let the chicken sit in the warm water until its internal temperature hits 165 degrees F, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer the chicken to paper towels to dry. Once cool enough to handle, pull the chicken apart with your hands or forks until shredded but still chunky.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix the celery, scallions, cherries, mustard, sugar and salt and pepper to taste. Let this mixture sit for at least 10 minutes or up to 1 hour to extract all that flavor. Add the mayo and mix until incorporated. Adjust the seasoning if necessary.
• Add the shredded chicken and walnuts to the mayo mixture. Adjust the seasonings. Let it sit in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving, overnight preferred.
• Place a piece of lettuce on the bottom half of a croissant followed by a scoop of chicken salad, one or two tomato slices, a spoonful of hot cherry pepper relish or giardiniera and a little drizzle of balsamic glaze. Close the top of the croissant. Assemble 3 more sandwiches. Cut the sandwiches in half and eat!

SUMMER CHICKEN SALAD WITH RASPBERRIES

Steps:

• Preheat your BBQ to medium-high. Mix the BBQ sauce, honey, and salt in a medium-sized bowl then add the chicken breasts and coat them in the marinade. Let them marinate while you chop the veggies and prepare the dressing.
• Put the salad dressing ingredients in a blender and blend on high until smooth. If needed, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dressing is pourable.
• Pile all of the salad ingredients into a large salad bowl.
• When your grill is hot, put on the chicken breasts. Let them cook for 6 minutes then baste them with some of the marinade and flip them over to cook for another 6-8 minutes on the other side, or until they are no longer pink inside and reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Remove the chicken from the grill and let it rest for 5 minutes. Drizzle half of the raspberry vinaigrette over the salad then top with the chicken. Optional: slice the chicken breasts into strips before adding them to the salad.