I’m a little obsessed with chicken salads.
Ok, a lot obsessed.
The most recent obsession was inspired by a lunch from Clementine, a cute little cafe a few blocks away from my office. I love getting 2 or 3 of their fresh and seasonal salads from the deli case. Everything I’ve had has been great, and I had heard good things about the chicken salad on their fall menu. I never pass up chicken salad and this one did not disappoint.
As I was eating, I realized that there are reasons that restaurants and cafes have ridiculously delicious chicken salads:
- Not as many veggies. I always try to cram in WAY too many veggies. There is something to be said about some veggies for crunch, but I usually overdo it.
- Real Mayo. Not light, and definitely not fat-free. Sigh. Oh and lots of it never hurts.
- Shredded chicken. It has to be shredded in my opinion, cubed chicken just isn’t the same.
I’m not really sure why I’m considering this a fall chicken salad (the apples?) but apples are a fall fruit and I’m finally ready to embrace fall so just go with it, ok?
In order to get the “lots of mayo” flavor without all of the calories, I used a combination of reduced-fat mayonnaise and greek yogurt which ended up being the perfect amount of each. The salad will last 3-4 days in the fridge – perfect for a week of lunches!
Nutrition Facts:
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Fall Chicken Salad
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Keywords: entree salad sandwich gluten-free high protein low-carb soy-free sugar-free chicken fall
Ingredients (6 servings)
- 3/4 cup light mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt
- salt, pepper, rosemary
- 1/2 cup finely diced celery (about 1 stalk celery)
- 1/2 cup finely diced apple (about 1 small apple)
- 1/2 cup chopped green onion (about 4 onions)
- 4 cups shredded chicken (about 2 chicken breasts)
Instructions
Combine mayonnaise, yogurt, and seasonings.
Mix in celery, apple, green onion and chicken.
Serve in sandwiches, on greens or eat on its own!
Faith @ The Cheap Girl's Guide to Chic
I totally feel ya – sometimes I get so carried away making things “healthy” that I lose a lot of the things that make the original version so good. I’m coming to really love fats – a little real butter or real mayo goes a long way, and it just takes everything to the next level. I’m sitting here eating a whole milk yogurt going OH MY GOSH WHY IS THIS SO GOOD….oh yeah, because it’s not a reduced fat concoction!
Emily
Exactly! Sometimes we just need a reminder. 🙂
Megan (Braise The Roof)
I would say that the shredded chicken thing is applicable to MOST chicken situations- it’s just better shredded! (same goes for pork) This totally passes for a fall chicken salad- apples make everything autumnal!
erin
This is going to be added to my lunch rotation! Loving all things apple and all things pear right now 🙂
Rachel @ The Avid Appetite
Love love love this! I usually put grapes in my chicken salad, and I love that you used apples…I can’t wait to try that! And I will definitely be trying the mayo-yogurt combo!
sarah k @ the pajama chef
i adore apples in chicken salad. great choice 🙂 definitely fall. i bet cranberries would be good, too!
emily (a nutritionist eats)
I was THIS close to adding cranberries, but then I remembered that I was trying to keep it simple! Ha!
Kathleen @ KatsHealthCorner
What a gorgeous salad! I bet my family would love this! (I would totally try it out with greek-style plain coconut yogurt for myself.) 🙂
Chelsea@Ahintofhealthy
Chicken salad is one of my favorite recipes! This looks amazing Emily 🙂
Mercedes@Satisfy My Sweet Tooth
I love the nutrition facts that you now include with recipes Em! And I agree, shredded chicken all the way for chicken salads!
Alysha @Shesontherun
I’m sure this would be awesome with leftover turkey too.
Dana
There was a cafe near the office of my first internship, and they had a chicken salad that sounds very similar to this with the addition of yellow raisins. I’ll have to try this, because I’ve never been able to replicate it at home before!
Kristin @ FoodFash
So funny, I have a fall chicken salad recipe scheduled to post tomorrow. I added some nutmeg and stuffed it in an acorn squash to fall-itize it!
las artes
I try not to buy anything over .50 a pound when I’m watching pennies. Most stores sell 10# of chicken leg quarters for $ 4-$ 5 (less than .50#) and well worth it for the bones alone. Do not waste the bones & fat, render the fat & use for cooking, chop up fat chunks left over after rendering and add to soups & sauces with some of the meat. Don’t eat the meat alone, add it to sauces and soups to stretch it. You can use the bones 3-4x to make bone stock (add vinegar and simmer a couple of days) Do not include meat in the long simmering. I add my old bones to my new bones and store in freezer. Use the stock to make soups and add to everything for more nutrition. Eggs are sometimes cheap. Buy lots if they are less than $ 1 dozen (wash egg shells with vinegar and add to bone stock for more calcium) Store brand processed cheese is usually half cost of hard cheese (this may be a luxury item at this point). Buy the huge (gallon or more) plastic container of mayo, it may be a lot to invest at one time but it’s half cost of smaller bottles. Use instead of buying salad dressing. You can make egg salad or chicken salad and stretch it with lots mayo (added calories) mix with thinly shredded cabbage & carrots for more body.