Saturday, April 20, 2013

Italian Chicken Salad (Insalata di pollo)


No Mayonnaise.

Instead, there is a mustard vinaigrette that holds it all together.  Some salty briny capers for extra flavor.  And just to really separate my old classic Chicken Salad from an Italian version, roasted Red Peppers and Garlic.

Not your (well, my) Summer salad... But it is my want to be Italian Grandmother new favorite!

Plus, if you squint, ignore the yellowish mustard tint; you can see the colors of the Italian Flag.  Funny how often that happens.


Keep scrolling down for this easy to follow recipe,,,


OK... Here's what I did...


Italian Chicken Salad (Insalata di pollo)


Ingredients
  • Meat from a 1 Breast and 1 Leg from a Rotisserie Chicken, diced (about 2 cups)
  • 1 Medium Red Bell Pepper, meat cut into thin strips
  • 3 Cloves Garlic
  • Drizzle of Olive Oil
  • 1/2 Medium Red Onion, sliced paper thin
  • 1/4 Cup Chopped Fresh Parsley
  • 1/4 Cup Slivered Almonds
  • 2 TBS Capers, with brine
  • Salt and Pepper To Taste
  • For the Vinaigrette
  • 2 TBS Red Wine Vinegar
  • 1 TBS Lemon Juice
  • 1 TBS Honey
  • 1 TBS Dijon Mustard
  • Shaved Parmesan Cheese Chips to Garnish
Cooking Directions
  1. First, roast the garlic and pepper slices. Form a boat from Aluminum Foil, line the bottom with the peppers and garlic, drizzle with Olive Oil and roast in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
  2. When the peppers and garlic are finished roasting, separate the garlic and mince.
  3. Combine the chicken, minced garlic, roasted peppers, red onions, almonds, capers and parsley. Salt and pepper to taste
  4. To make the fresh vinaigrette, combine the vinegar, lemon juice, honey and mustard in a blender and blend until emulsified.
  5. Mix the chicken salad with the fresh vinaigrette to coat.
  6. Garnish with shaved Parmesan Cheese
  7. Serve Cold and ENJOY!

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Yes indeed, also one of my new favorite "52 Uses for a Rotisserie Chicken" (now over 75!!!).

I am trying something a bit new this round of recipes... My own little culinary challenge of seeing just what I can do with a single rotisserie bird.

This is week Number three, chicken number THREE... and the Fourth recipe I made from the blessed bird. If you click HERE, you will see my page devoted to my "52 Uses for a Rotisserie Chicken" (now over 75!!!).  Scroll down to the bottom and you will see some of the possibilities of what you can make with a single bird (week one, seven dishes, week 2 a record EIGHT dishes all from the same bird).

I already used a leg quarter to make a Rotisserie Reubon Calzone for 2 People.  I still have more than half the bird for more to come!

I turned leftover side dish into a filling spicy Buffalo Chicken Risotto for 2 People with the meat from only one of the breasts.

I made a FANTASTIC Chicken Alfredo Pizza from a single Chicken Thigh!

And now a Chicken Salad from a leg and breast... and I still have two wings to make a snack with!

My Goals for the experiment......
  1. Eat Well... Make something that tastes good.
  2. Recipes for 2 people. One of the great things about a rotisserie chicken is the versatility fr a quick meal for small dinners (breakfast and lunch). Save the BIG cooking for another day, let's have something for just my wife and myself (and young couples, empty nest couples and singles)
  3. Versatility... Just how many rotisserie chicken recipes are out there???
  4. Keep Track of the costs... Life on a budget, need I explain more?
  5. Go beyond the basic recipes and add some tips and HOT TO Photos appropriate for less experienced cooks so that indeed...ANYONE CAN COOK THIS!
I hope the tips and extra photos helped...

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So, as to cost for this dish....

The chicken averages out to a dollar per recipe... $2.00
The capers were a free item I got for Christmas in one of those gourmet Christmas Baskets.  I probably would not have bought them if they were not in my pantry already.  I did look and I can get a small jar for about $2.  I used 1/4 of the jar ... So, 50 Cents for the Capers
The Bell Pepper cost a Dollar (a sin)
The Almonds, another Dollar
The rest of the ingredients I count as "Pantry Items".  Something that I always have around the house and I do not figure in the cost of the dish.

Total came in at under $4.50....  Less than $2.50 a serving for a snack or lunch that made 6 sandwiches (two days worth)!!!

A Great menu item for the costs!
Stay tuned, come on back tomorrow and see what else I make from the single bird!

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This recipe has been added to my growing list of "52 Uses For a Rotisserie Chicken"  (Now close to 100!)...I am so confused... $5.49 for a fully cooked, fully seasoned Oven Roasted, Rotisserie Chicken. Yet shop in the raw meat department and most raw chickens are at best $8 each and usually far closer to $10. Anyone have an answer??? Me either. So, I can either rail against the machine, or learn to embrace the beauty that is the $5 chicken! In this pin are recipes I have made, and recommend. MORE than 52 (I just can't stop)..
You get the idea.  From Scratch Pizza to Chinese Take Out recipes, Lots of Soups and Chili... Appetizers to Main Courses (Still can't find a dessert, but I am looking).  More than enough ideas for that store nought bird to shine with just a little extra work

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So,  I am pleased to list this as one of my Growing list of  "52 Authentic Italian Recipes"!!!

Well over 52 recipes actually as I just can't stop. The world's most popular cuisine, authentic, natural, organic, Farm to Table... the Italians started, perfected or embraced it before it became a fad. This page is a guide to Italian Cooking... For the home cook!  So, Cin Cin (toast) and Buon Appetito (Enjoy your Meal) to you all and let's Cook authentic Italian!

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