Chickens and Blessings

Maw Maw is a wonderful cook. She has taught me many tips and tricks and has given me some of the absolute best recipes I have ever made. I am forever calling her for some kind of advice or recipe, and it always seems as though someone let her know I was going to call, as she can always answer any question I may have without skipping a beat.

We sometimes have this chicken salad at family get-togethers, and it seems to always be the first thing to go. =) {I know the ingredient list looks a little lengthy, but a lot of it is just me blabbering my 2 cents!}

Maw Maw’s Chicken Salad

I’m not sure that I can find the words to even begin to describe Maw Maw. She is nothing short of amazing. Her timeless wisdom, unchanging beauty, endless strength, immeasurable kindness, and unconditional love are just a few of the things that make Maw Maw so special. She is the one person in my life who has always been (and continues to be) constant. It doesn’t matter if things are going well or I have gotten into some kind of pickle (which I unintentionally do sometimes), I know I can pick up the phone, dial her number, and after the praise or lecture she will undoubtedly give, her advice will be the best that anyone could possibly offer.

1 whole chicken (you can buy one and cook it yourself, or you can buy a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. I usually go with the rotisserie, it’s less work and about the same price.)

¼ of a medium onion; finely diced (I’d say it’s about ¼ cup)

2 celery stalks; finely diced

½ cup chopped pecans (you can also use walnuts if you like)

1 cup red seedless grapes; halved (a little trick to half these a little quicker: take 2 lids from small containers that are {or are about} the same size and place some of the grapes in one side until it is full, then put the other lid on top, now run your knife in between the 2 tops. Pretty easy, huh?)

2 tablespoons sweet relish

½ cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon honey mustard (if you don’t have honey mustard, you can use dijon, but don’t use regular yellow mustard. I made that mistake once… yuck.)

1 teaspoon grape jelly or jam. (if you don’t have it, leave it out. it’s not a big difference, it just compliments the grapes.

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon white pepper (black pepper is good too)

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon paprika

{You can add other stuff to this. I like roasted red bell peppers in place of the paprika(but usually don’t have time to roast them and the ones in the jar are too mushy), and sometimes I add a little bit of green bell pepper as substitute for some of the onion. It’s really whatever my budget or schedule will allow.}

• If you didn’t buy a rotisserie chicken, either boil your chicken or roast it. When it cools, pull all of the meat from the bones.

• In a large bowl, add the chicken, onion, celery, pecans, grapes and relish.

• In a separate (smaller) bowl whisk together the mayonnaise, honey mustard, jelly/jam, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and paprika. (The jelly/jam might be a little difficult. Sometimes, I start with that and try to get it kinda smooth before I add the other stuff.)

• Add the Mayo mixture to the chicken and stir it all together until everything is well coated. (Sometimes I have to add a little more mayo, but usually ½ cup gets it.)

{This is also good with fresh parsley if you have some.}