Recipe of the Week: Summer Chicken Salad

I know, it's been forever since I blogged. And now here I am posting a recipe. That's about as impersonal and far away from an update as you can get! So shooot me. But before you do, give this chicken salad a try. I'll post more later, I promise. Neil's on business until Thursday, so I should have a little more ME time in the evenings to get this baby caught up (and Carrie, that includes a post about you).

In honor of a new season, here's a light and simple summer dish.

First, you want to grill some chicken, preferably the night before so that the chicken is chilled by the time you get to the salad. If you have a favorite marinade, great! Use it! I like to try new things, and last night I threw this marinade together. Quantities are simply estimates, as I rarely measure:

• 2-3 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 c. bbq sauce
• 1/3 c. orange marmalade
• 1/4 c. honey

Depending on size, slice each chicken breast into 2-3 large chunks. Combine bbq sauce, marmalade and honey in casserole dish. Add chicken chunks and coat evenly. Cover with saran wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes or longer, allowing chicken to soak up the flavors. Grill chicken, eat and enjoy, reserving enough to last yourself another meal or two.

Now we get to the really good part. This is what I had for lunch today.

Ingredients (quantities according to personal preference):

• left over chicken, chilled and thinly sliced
• lettuce - I prefer butter aka bib lettuce. If you're local, Sunflower Farmer's Market sells it for $.77 a head.
• avocado, thinly sliced
• mandarin oranges
• craisins
• some other favorite toppings: strawberries, blueberries, goat cheese, almonds, pine nuts, or anything else that sounds good to you
• salad dressing (I prefer classic Italian)

Combine ingredients, and enjoy! Simple? Yes. Original? Well, sort of. Yummy? Absolutely.

Happy Summer, everyone!