Samson's Favorite Meal at 20 Months

Today marks the 4th day in a row that Samson has eaten chicken salad for either lunch or dinner. Funny, given that he has also refused the last four opportunities to eat breaded, fried chicken pieces (a previous favorite). Thought our readers might want to give our recipe a try and have a little bit of Samson with their next meal. Enjoy!

Samson's Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 12.5 oz can premium chunk chicken breast, drained & shredded (we use Costco's Kirkland brand; you could sub the same amount of rotisserie chicken, or freshly cooked, seasoned breast or tenders)
• 2 ribs celery, finely chopped
• 2 young green onions, finely chopped (you could substitute 1/4 cup finely chopped sweet onion like 1015, Vidalia, or Maui)
• 1/3 cup smoked almonds, crushed (put in quart ziploc bag & smash with rolling pin or wine bottle until desired texture)
• 1/3 - 1/2 cup mayo (to taste; we use canola mayo to eliminate saturated fat & cholesterol; you could sub Miracle Whip)
• optional: 1 tsp finely chopped fresh tarragon (this adds a great extra note of flavor, but only if you can get fresh herbs)
  

Mix all ingredients until well incorporated. Best flavor develops after overnight stay in the fridge. Serve on fingers, crackers, in sandwiches, or as stuffing for celery or boats of baby zucchini or cucumber. For party sandwiches, remove crusts, cut into small shapes, coat edges with additional mayo, and roll in finely crushed, smoked almonds.