Oh Goodness- time passes SO quickly in the summertime. We’ve been having a summer heat wave here in NYC— the kind that will make you take a whole month long vacation from thrifty foodies in order to lay out, have out of town visitors, go out of town for a show, move apartments, and enjoy the outdoors. So for serious- things got super busy, but after a month absence I’m back with loads of new recipes to post!
This summer is already shaping up to be full of picnics. My sister got me a fabulous picnic basket for world market that I’ve been packing pretty frequently with tasty lunches to be enjoyed by the water. There is a lovely sketch of grass about 8 minutes from my house that you can enjoy some sensible al fresco dining without the crowds of central park. I started ‘picnic season’ with a quest to make a healthy version of chicken salad. How in the world could you take something with a mayo base and make it healthy? Well you get rid of the mayo and chicken- replacing with nonfat Greek yogurt and faux chicken- effectively making it vegan AND vegetarian for all of my NYC veggie friends. Here’s my take on a vegetarian ‘faux chicken salad– it’s quickly turned into the sandwich of my summer.
Faux Chicken Salad
For the Marinade:
Juice of 2 limes
Juice of 1 lemon
Juice of 1 orange
2 tbs olive oil
1 tbs thyme
1 tbs parsley
1 tbs oregano
1 tbs cumin
2 cloves diced garlic
1 Bag or Quorn Chicken Bits
1 Small container of nonfat Greek yogurt
1 cup red seedless grapes(roughly sliced in half)
2 stalks of celery- diced
1 tsp dill
Salt and pepper to season
Juice of 1 lemon
Make the marinade by combining fruit juices, olive oil, and spices. Pour over frozen ‘chicken’ pieces and let sit for about an hour stirring a few times to make sure everything gets covered. Meanwhile, preheat the oven for 350 degrees and line a baking pan with foil (trust me- don’t skip this step or you will have a big huge burnt mess on your hands that even the best dishwasher can’t get rid of). Pour out your chicken mix(marinade included) into the pan and bake for 30 minutes stirring around 15 minutes into the baking process.
Combine your newly cooked faux chicken, Greek yogurt, dill, grapes and celery. Season with salt/pepper and squeeze lemon over the whole mixture. Stir together and chill overnight before enjoying on a sandwich 🙂
Simple enough that you can enjoy your afternoon AND have tasty lunch. On a side note- If you haven’t tried quorn meat substitutes do yourself a favor and get some. They sell them at whole foods for about $5 a bag. It’s so tasty that I can’t even taste the difference between regular chicken and the substitute– which has a lower fat content than its counterpart. Check it out!
Happy Picnicking!
-Charlie
P.S. that amazing delicious tasty quinoa salad in the picture is coming up next week- GET EXCITED!
Thrifty Foodies 