With the combination of chicken, celery, apples, grapes, walnuts with blue cheese is, in my opinion, a perfect main course salad! You could use cooked, cubed turkey for the salad too. We buy our grapes, grown in Kelowna, B.C. from the farmer’s market in the fall…they are so worth waiting for.
Makes 8 Servings
4 chicken breasts (6 cups) cooked, cut into ½” cubes
1 ½ cups each celery & apples, cut into ½” dice
¾ cup each chopped green onions & toasted walnuts, or pecans (see below)
1 cup red grapes, halved
12 oz. blue cheese, crumbled
2 – 3 heads butter lettuce
1 small head radicchio or red leaf lettuce
Garnish:
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
8 sprigs of fresh dill, fronds removed from stem or fresh chives
8 small stems of red grapes
Dressing :
1 ½ cups mayonnaise (light would be fine)
1 ½ Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a medium bowl; season to taste with salt & pepper.
Assemble the Salad:
Combine the chicken, celery, apples & grapes. Gently fold in the dressing to combine; season with salt & pepper to taste. Place leaves of butter lettuce & radicchio or red leaf lettuce on 8 dinner plates. Divide the chicken mixture evenly between the plates; top with blue cheese; garnish with toasted walnuts, parsley, dill fronds or chives & grapes.
Helpful link to Toasting Nuts.
