This Chicken Salad is easy to make, fast to make, and tastes good with croissants, regular sandwich bread, crackers, pita pockets, chips, pretzels and more! It is my go to. My mom used to make it all the time. I tweaked her recipe a little and made it my own and every time I make it I get a million compliments. Here is the recipe for those of you who have been asking (and those who haven't).
Ingredients:
2 Cans of Chicken
(I use the Kirkland from Costco)
1 Granny Smith Apple Green Onion Best Foods Real Mayonnaise Salad Supreme Seasoning (Red Grapes optional)
1- Chop the apple into as fine pieces as you can. I never use the core, but always use the skin. I have a Pampered Chef chopper (like the one you can see on the right) which makes this very easy. You can lightly whirl this in a food processor as well. I have found the finer you can get the apple (without making it apple sauce) the better.
2- Chop up green onions. It is hard to say how many to use, I like a lot of onion. I usually use 5 or 6 green onions, but sometimes I get organic ones and they are much smaller. It is all about preference. But use at least 2 green onions per can of chicken. You can always chop a few more after it is done.
3- Open the cans of chicken and drain out the water. Put the chicken into a bowl.
4- Add mayonnaise. I never measure this once again, I just add enough that it is moist and chicken salad looking. Usually one scoop of my rubber scraper is enough... I know that is very specific.
5- after folding and stirring mayonnaise and chicken together, add in the apple and green onion and continue to fold and stir.
6- Add Salad Supreme Seasoning (as seen on the left) to taste. I actually use a lot of it.
If you want to add grapes I always cut them in half with a little pairing knife first. My mom always made this with grapes but I don't. You can also add cashews, which once again I do not, but it is in the original recipe.
Tyra Banks. I love this woman. I watched her talk show when I was young and I am heart broken that her new one isn't available online! I have seen every episode of America's Next Top Model at least twice, and I applied to be one of the Beautytainers for her new DS cosmetics company Tyra Beauty the day she released the video announcing it. If you'd like to know more about that please click the link at the top of the page that say "Tyra Beauty".
Recently Tyra came out and shared something about her struggles on the road to getting pregnant. She said a lot of people have asked her if she wants kids or why she doesn't have them yet and that the truth is that she hasn't been able to. She has also undergone IVF to no avail. This story has inspired thousands, including myself. I also can not get pregnant naturally and one of the reasons my husband and I rarely talk about when we will start trying is because we know that it will be an expensive, long and emotional road.
However recently TyTy also came out with a new hashtag. She talks on a facebook status about how the road is long and hard for some women. She says:
"...a lot of social media is about snap judgments and being well...judgy and just assuming things. The questions hurt. Why? Because you never know what someone may be going through. So you know what? Let’s #StopAsking"
I disagree. I think that many women are a part of a terrible and awful club. I agree that the question can hurt, it can bring up painful memories and sad thoughts. I think that a lot of women have undergone failed IVF attempts, and several miscarriages, and even just the simple devastation of finding out that they can not get pregnant. I think that by trying to begin a movement where everyone just stops asking about it we also shut down the dialogue.
I believe in a very sacred and powerful bond called sisterhood. I believe all women are my sisters. The reason I believe so strongly in sisterhood is that I believe that as women we can come together and create such strong forces of comfort and good. I think that by not opening up the dialog we instead create a feeling of loneliness.
The reason Tyra's story has been so inspiring is because people don't talk about this subject. She is one of the few celebrities who have ever come forward to talk about their fertility struggles. There were thousands of women who have felt alone in this. Now they feel like they finally have a celebrity who gets it, a sister who knows, and they have been compelled to share and comfort her and they all came together. That is the bond I am talking about, the force I love. How wonderful would it be if instead of not asking at all and burying our feelings, that THAT was the norm? Tyra is a celebrity, so millions of women have come forward to share to her and build that bond. Wouldn't it be great if the normal thing was to know that you are not alone and to have all of your sisters come together and share?
Miscarriage and failed IVF and adoptions that don't go through... they are all terrible. It effects women in a way that men will never know. People say the stupidest things about these events. Things like "it was probably a blessing in disguise" or "at least you weren't far along", and even "It obviously wasn't your time yet". How hurtful? And the reason these awful and hurtful things come out of peoples mouths (often people that we really love and are close to) is because they do not know what to say to comfort someone going through this. That NEEDS to change and it will not if we #StopAsking. Instead I recommend we #StartSharing.
In the episode of The FAB Life when they discussed it Chrissy Teigen talks about how her and her husband are seeing fertility doctors and have been trying for years. She then says:
"Once you open up about all of those things to other people you start learning that a lot of other people in your life are seeing these people [fertility specialists] and they have this shame about it. SO anytime somebody asks me if I am going to have kids I just say 'one day you are going to ask that to the wrong girl who is really struggling and it is going to be really hurtful to them."
But do you know what is crazy to me? The same reason she wants people to stop asking is the same reason I think they should start sharing and ask away. The truth is anyone can get offended by anything. We have all gone through hard times. I am a hair stylist. As a stylist I have to build a relationship with each guests in my chair. I do that by getting to know more about them and sharing about me. I have had people get offended by me asking them a lot of questions. Some include "do you have pets", "Are you from Utah" (which is where I live and work), and "are you in school right now". I even had someone get upset that I asked them if they had any fun plans for the summer.
People get offended anytime you bring up unpleasant memories, the problem is we all have them. Some people have bad family relationships, they grew up hard, could not afford school, flunked out of college, didn't finish high school, can't afford vacations, went through a divorce, have had pets pass away, maybe had a vacation planned that fell through due to a break up or being let go from work. We will never know what will trigger each others emotions.
But what Teigen said that really struck me was that a lot of the women she knew had a sense of SHAME about their fertility struggles. Why? Because as women we expect our bodies to be able to create life, and when they can not it makes us feel broken. A big thought that has crept across my mind as well as the minds of many of my sisters who have struggled with this is "when we got married we wanted kids, and I can't give that to him." some even going as far as to think "would he have married me had he know how broken I am?" But here is the thing sisters, there are a lot of us.
How do we find those who have been there? How do we get advice from those who know? How do we reach out to those who understand? How do we gain comfort from our sisters and comfort others in return? By sharing. People also need to understand that having kids is the natural order of things. Especially if you have said in your life that you want them, your family may be wondering when you plan on starting. It isn't to pry, or be rude. The questions come from a place of love and genuine care about you and your life. They don't want to be nosy, they just truly care about what happens to you. So instead of getting offended, open up. Start Sharing.
Here is my recipe for Spinach lasagna roll ups. I modified the one O found on Budget Bytes a little, so if you are looking for the original you can find it here!
Spinach Lasagna Roll Ups
INGREDIENTS:
12 lasagna noodles
15 oz. ricotta
1 cup shredded mozzarella
¼ cup grated Parmesan
1 lg. egg
1 cup of fresh pre cleaned Spinach
to taste salt and pepper
as needed non-stick spray
PREP:
preheat the oven to 400 degrees
prepare an 8x8 glass casserole dish by spraying it with non-stick spray
STEP BY STEP:
The recipe recommend using a large pot and filling it with water. I hate hauling out the big pot so I prefer to use a large skillet with high sides. Fill it with water and a pinch of salt. When it comes to a full boil, add the lasagna noodles and cook until al dente (soft but not soggy… about 12-15 minutes).
While the noodles are boiling, prepare the filling. Take your spinach and chop it up! I like to do mine in longer slices. (the original recipe uses frozen spinach but I prefer fresh and already had fresh so that is what I used, however it is super important that the spinach is dry.)
Combine the spinach in a bowl with the ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, freshly grated pepper and about ¼ tsp of salt. Mix until well combined.
At this point your noodles will be done or at least soon. Once they are done strain them in a colander and then lay them out on a dry cutting board or parchment paper, just a clean flat surface so they can dry a little bit.
Place a few tablespoons of filling on each noodle and spread to cover from edge to edge. The filling does not need to be thick because once the noodle is rolled up, it will be compounded. Make sure to spread it all the way to the edges of the noodles. The spread is slippery and I found it easiest to use a plastic fork or my fingers to pat down the filling as opposed to spreading it with a spoon or anything else really.
Roll the noodles up and place in the prepared casserole dish. Repeat until all of your filling is gone. This recipe will only fill 10 noodles. I suggested cooking 12 because they will often tear or break and it is nice to have backups. Pour the marinara sauce over the rolled noodles making sure to cover all surfaces. The sauce will keep the noodles hydrated and soft while baking and make them all tasty!
Cover the dish in foil and bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot or divide into individual portions and refrigerate.
Mariana Sauce
I do not have a recipe for this sauce. Frustrating, I know, but the thing is you can taste is the entire way through so I really just add spices to the base until I am happy. However this is what I use.
12 oz can of crushed tomatoes
8 oz of tomato sauce
Now I will be honest, you can not find a 12 oz can of crushed tomatoes. They only come in 24 oz cans, or least that is all I have seen. So you have two options, you can either make a lot more sauce than you need, you can make extra and save it for later, or you can buy your own marinara sauce pre-made (like Prego). If you double this recipe (for a larger family) and put it in a 9x13 pan, just using two 8 oz cans of tomatoes sauce and the full can of 24 oz of crushed tomatoes is perfect. I personally open the can of crushed tomatoes, use half and put the other half in a container and use it later.
Then I usually add these spices:
Garlic Powder
Dried Onion
Salt
Pepper
Italian Seasoning
(I use the 5th season spices which are a dollar brand from Walmart because I am poor and they taste amazing!)
I literally add a generous amount of each and then taste it. I think I use less Salt and Garlic powder than anything else because they have the strongest flavors. However this is the recipe I use for pizza sauce too as well as other red sauces. So It depends on what the meal is that I am going with. So with Pizza I usually put more Dried Onion and Italian Seasoning than pepper.
OPTIONAL: You can also add a pound of ground beef. One is enough in my opinion, even when doubling the recipe,
6- Add Salad Supreme Seasoning (as seen on the left) to taste. I actually use a lot of it. 
