Hot Chicken Salad

Good evening and come in out of the cold.  We have had our first, mild, cold, winter day down here in Georgia.  The wind has been blowing quite briskly the last 2 days and the temperature has dropped into the 40s at night but the days have been quite wonderful.  The sun has been bright and warm and it has been beautiful.  Of course, I would rather have hot and getting hotter but into every Southern Lady's life a little winter must fall and I will just have to pull out the sweaters and jackets. 

As I was cleaning out the refrigerator today I realized I needed to do something with half a baked chicken and thought of several options but decided to try something new.  Wanting something hot but easy I began looking at various recipes but nothing seemed to be what I wanted.
 Chicken salad was on my mind but I wanted it hot and all the recipes I found were more casserole than salad and that is not what I was looking for.  So I decided to base a chicken salad on a hot tuna salad we use to make tuna burgers but with a little twist.  I had some lemons I needed to use and I know that dried cranberries are good in most everything so I began to cook. 

This hot chicken salad was the results and Roy suggested it would also make a good, hot dip for crackers and I think so also.  Tonight we ate it with Triscuits and I put mine on a bed of torn lettuce.  The hot salad on the cold lettuce was good. It would also be good on toasted buns of your choice or croissants.  Try it and let me know what you think.

Hot Chicken Salad

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked, chopped chicken – not shredded ½ cup chopped onion
½ cup chopped dill pickle
½ cup chopped apple – unpeeled
½ cup chopped bell pepper of banana pepper
½ cup dried cranberries
1 cup coarsely grated cheddar cheese
1/ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
3/4 cup salad dressing
2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1. Mix chicken, onion, pickle, bell pepper, and chopped apple
2. Mix salad dressing and freshly squeezed lemon juice
3. Add salad dressing and lemon and mix well.
4. Fold in chopped eggs, cheeses and cranberries blending throughout.
5. Pour into casserole which has been sprayed with no-stick spray
6. Cover with additional grated cheddar cheese
7. Cover and bake until hot – about 30 minutes. Do not over bake.
8. Spread between hot, toasted buns of choice or serve with choice of crackers as a dip or spread
9. Can also be used as a main dish

I think if you sprinkled the canned fried onions or cracker crumbs on top that would be good also.  Of course, like me you can leave out any ingredients you don't like or add others.  Let me know how you changed it and I will add it to the recipe for others to see.

Ya'll come back to see us, be careful going home and thanks for dropping by my 'Net porch for a visit.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach