Of Chicken Salad and Friends

First off, here is the recipe for this delicious salad. It was a big hit with my friends, Susan and Amy, who came for lunch last Wednesday.

I would suggest two additions to the salad when you make it.

1. Increase the curry to a heaping teaspoon or even two level teaspoons.

I found it too mild, as-is and added several more dashes of curry and remixed the salad.

2. I also added a couple teaspoons of apple juice (but any fruit juice you have on hand will do) because I found the salad was too dry using straight mayo. Definitely make it a day ahead so the flavors have time to "marry". It also allows the curry to stain the salad it's signature yellow color.

The recipe says 6 half cup servings. The three of us polished off the bowl and used bread to wipe it clean of the dressing! Curry is good stuff! Yum. So that is my other suggestion. (3). Make more than you think you need. The salad is excellent eaten as a leftover-- but you may not have any!

I have to mention the serving plates that I used. They are those glass hostess plates you find at sales, in their original boxes, with matching punch cups. I had bought mine 3 years ago for a couple dollars at a local garage sale, but never really looked closely at them (never used them!) until this lunch(eon). Beneath the indentation for the punch cup is another sectioned area with a funny lip on it's edge.... to hold a lit cigarette. It was a built-in ashtray! A perfectly acceptable thing at one time to smoke while eating, but now I think blaacchh! It was a conversation starter at our lunch (we are all non-smokers).

Although we are all tea drinkers, I served wine. Red, because it's all I had, but it was perfect with the curry. Susan makes jewelry (she is a beadaholic among other things) while Amy draws, paints and does mixed media stuff. She does a lot of commission work- mainly murals. So we talked art, old friends, thrift stores (Susan worked at one) and the time flew. As soon as they left, I wanted to schedule another "play date". These gatherings need to be less rare. Susan is moving to Nebraska this week, but Amy and I are tentatively planning a wine and cheese picnic on the acreage she and her husband bought. They have their "city" house for sale and are dreaming about moving to the country. A story for another post.

To recap, make curried chicken salad and invite friends over.

Serve wine.

Discuss dreams.

And make plans to do it again.

Soon.