The Best Chicken Salad You've Ever Had.

A couple weeks ago I posted a picture of some delicious chicken salad I made for lunch that week.  I thought I'd share the recipe so everyone can enjoy the goodness that is "Aunt Diane's Chicken Salad."  (Although it's come to my attention that the recipe actually came from a close family friend, Mrs. Wanda.  So it will heretofore be named Aunt Diane's-slash-Mrs. Wanda's Chicken Salad."  Or you can just call it "mouthful of goodness."  Whichever you choose.)  Also, make sure you see the recommendations at the bottom before trying!  And if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!

You'll Need:

3-4 chicken breasts (I used 3)

celery

chopped pecan halves (I used pecan pieces)

miracle whip

honey

salt and pepper

(Not pictured: chicken.  Because it was still raw.  Gross.)

Step One:
Boil the chicken for 45 minutes.  Once it has cooled, cut the chicken into small cubes and place in bowl.

Step Two:

Wash the celery and chop it up!  I use small pyrex ramekins to "measure" my stuff so it's not an actual measurement.  But if I did measure it out, it would be about 3/4 cup.

Step Three:
Measure out 3/4 cup pecan halves.  There should be equal parts celery and pecan halves.  So if you add more celery, add more pecans!

(These are the pyrex ramekins I use.  I hope you can kind of see the size I'm talking about.)

Step Four:
Pour ingredients into bowl with chicken.  I add the same amount of craisins as celery and pecans.  It ends up being a little less than the whole bag.

Step Five:
Make the sauce.  Two serving-spoon (heaping spoonfuls) sizes of miracle whip.  Add honey on top of the miracle whip.  Make sure the honey covers the miracle whip. I always add a little extra honey.  As you can see here. Delicious.

Step Six:
Add mixture to chicken salad and toss it all together!  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Recommendations:

I've made this quite a few times, so I know how my husband and I like it.  These are just a few things I've learned when making this...

1. It usually takes 3 celery stalks to get the amount we like.

2. I've started using pecan pieces instead of halves (Diamond brand has both pieces and halves.)  I like the little pieces because I think it adds more crunch overall.  But if you want to use halves, then do!

3. I don't normally like miracle whip more than regular mayonnaise.  But in this recipe I'd definitely recommend miracle whip over mayo.  Again, just my opinion, so use regular mayo if you want!

4. As far as the sauce goes, start with a little sauce and add more if you need to.  It can get soggy really fast!  It's always easy to add more sauce if you need to, but if you add too much, it's too late!

5. More honey is never a bad thing.

6. I usually just add pepper, no salt.

If you try it, let me know how you like it!!