Cranberry Chicken Salad

Lately, I've been really bored with lunch...whether I'm packing one for work or just eating at home. It just seems like I've been having the same ol' thing...turkey sandwiches with provolone or ham and cheddar. Yawn! Last night, I was determined to come up with a fresh new sandwich. And what I came up with was certainly new and very flavorful. Here's what I did...

-1 large chicken breast

-1 large celery stalk, chopped 

-a large handful (about 1/4 cup or so) of dried cranberries

-a handful of roasted and salted sunflower seeds (about 2 TBS worth)

-about 1 TBS of fresh flat leaf (Italian) parsley, chopped

-1/2 cup of Greek yogurt

-1 rounded TBS of Miracle Whip or mayo (I know everyone has their preference, so use whatever you like.) 

-1 orange, zested

-a heavy pinch of parisien bonnes herbes (get it here:http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeysparisienherb.html--for some reason, this didn't create a link, so just copy and paste this into your browser. ) You could also use a small amount of fresh tarragon, chopped.

-a generous sprinkle of the following: celery seed, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper

Now, this can be made from a rotisserie chicken or any leftover chicken, but if you don't have either of those then just take 1 large chicken breast and put it into a medium pot. Add enough cold water to cover the chicken by an inch or so. Add in the celery seed, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper. Bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat and cook for about 10-12 minutes depending on the thickness of the chicken. The internal temperature should read 160 degrees. Remove the chicken from the pot and let it cool. Once you can handle the chicken, cut it into small cubes and put it into a medium mixing bowl. Stir in the chopped celery, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds and parsley. In a small mixing bowl, add the yogurt, Miracle Whip or mayo, orange zest, parisien bonnes herbes, and salt and pepper to taste. Adding a little of the dressing at a time to the chicken mixture, stir until mixture is just moistened and everything is distributed evenly. Add more dressing to your specific tastes. Serve on a warm bun or toast and top with romaine lettuce or spinach or serve it on top of a bed of greens!

Typically, chicken salads have nuts in them, but I wanted to write this without nuts. My niece, Emmy, has a very serious nut allergy, as I know many kids do. She can eat sunflower seeds though, so I wrote this recipe for her. It's sweet and crunchy with a little bit of tang from the Greek yogurt and orange zest. The parisien bonnes herbes (I know I use this a lot, but it's so versatile and a delicious blend of herbs!) add a fresh depth of flavor. This was a great recipe to get me out of my boring sandwich rut! I hope you enjoy it too!

Lemon, Chicken and Orzo Soup

Ok, for all of you Paradise Bakery lovers out there, this may seem familiar to you. I first had this soup several weeks ago and immediately fell in love with it. It was so fragrant and delicious. I absolutely had to recreate it, but with my own spin on it. Here's what I did...

-1 large chicken breast, trimmed of fat and cubed
-1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of orzo (Orzo is rice-shaped pasta. If you like more pasta add more, if you like less, add less.)
-1 large carrot, chopped
-1/2 of a medium onion, chopped
-2 medium celery stalks with leaves, chopped (celery leaves are really flavorful, don't throw them out!)
-about 1 cup of frozen spinach
-1 can of white beans, drained and rinsed (cannellini or Great Northern beans)
-a small handful of flat leaf (Italian) parsley, chopped (for garnish)
-the zest of 1 large lemon (reserve the rest of the lemon for garnishing)
-2 bay leaves
-1 heaping TBS of parisien bonnes herbes (get it here: http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeysparisienherb.html)
-about 1/2 cup of white wine
-48 oz of chicken stock
-shredded or shaved Parmesan cheese (for garnish)
-Salt and pepper
-Extra virgin olive oil

In a large stock pot or enamel dutch oven, heat a couple of TBS of olive oil over medium heat. Add the carrots, onions and celery, saute for about 5 minutes. Add salt, pepper, parisien bonnes herbes, and bay leaves and saute for another 2-3 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the white wine and let it cook out for 2-3 minutes. Leaving the heat on medium, add the stock and bring it up to a gentle simmer. Stir in the lemon zest. Add the cubed chicken and let simmer for 10-12 minutes. (Add the orzo at this point if you're cooking it in the soup, otherwise see Cook's Note below.) Reduce heat to low, add white beans and frozen spinach and warm through, about 8-9 minutes or until pasta is tender. To serve, ladle soup into bowls and garnish with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese, fresh parsley and a thinly sliced lemon wheel. If desired, squeeze some extra lemon juice into soup before serving. A hunk of crusty bread is a great accompaniment to this soup.

This soup is perfect for any time, but great if you're under the weather. It's quick and easy and just the smell of the lemon zest hitting the warm chicken stock is enough to start making you feel better whether you're sick or not! It's packed full of veggies and protein without skimping on flavor. This recipe will definitely be one of my go-to soups this winter season. Hope you give it a try!

***Cook's Note: If you plan on having this soup over several days or if your family happens to all eat at different times, then make the orzo in a separate pot and just add some to each bowl before serving. If you put the orzo into the soup and eat it over several days, you'll begin to notice that the orzo absorbs more and more of the liquid. It will bloat up and become mushy. You can make a large portion of orzo and once it's cooked stir in a small amount of olive oil to keep it from sticking together, cover it and put it in the fridge with the soup.

Balsamic Glazed Strawberries with Marscapone

It's been a pretty busy and crazy summer. So much has happened and I'm glad that the summer season is almost over. With that said, I have a great summertime dessert. I know I don't do many desserts, in fact, I think this may be first dessert post. See, I don't bake very often. I get caught up on having to measure everything and I don't do that when I cook. It doesn't seem like it, but it's actually quite liberating not to measure every little thing. That's what I like about this dessert...no baking and no measuring! :) Anyway, this dessert had everything that makes a great dessert. There were different and complimenting textures and tastes. Here's what I did...

-quartered strawberries, about 1/2 cup per serving
-thinly cut fresh basil, about 1 TBS per serving
-1 TBS Marscapone cheese at room temperature, shaped into a quenelle (a three-sided shape, see video below. Marscapone is an Italian style cream cheese, it's very rich with an heavy cream taste to it.)
-toasted pine nuts, slivered almonds can be substituted (toast nuts in a dry pan on medium low heat until golden brown, stirring frequently), for garnish
-1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar
-1 TBS honey


In a medium mixing bowl, combine quartered strawberries and fresh basil. Arrange in a neat pile onto each serving plate. Using 2 tablespoons scoop a heaping tablespoon of Marscapone and follow the video below to create the quenelle shape. Once shaped, place one quenelle on top of each pile of strawberries. In a small pot, combine balsamic vinegar and honey and simmer over medium heat for about 5 minutes until slightly thickened, whisking occasionally. Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts or slivered almonds in a dry saute pan until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Garnish the strawberries and Marscapone cheese with the balsamic glaze and toasted nuts.

With the quenelle technique, you just need to keep scooping the cheese back and forth until it creates a smooth 3-sided shape.

This is a really classy dessert without a lot of work. Everything about this really works well together. The sweetness of the berries are balanced with the tartness of the balsamic glaze and the crunch of the nuts compliment the creaminess of the Marscapone. The basil adds a fresh burst of flavor. It may say odd to pair basil and fruit, but it really is delicious. I hope you give it a try!