Too many menu items with nuts for luncheon tomorrow -- eek!

I was working through what I could do in advance tonight for a very small luncheon tomorrow, and realized, belatedly, that too many of my menu items have nuts in them. Any suggestions of what I could swap out would be appreciated! The only thing I don't want to change is my mother-in-law's Jell-o salad; it is a Southern classic that I know my friend enjoys, and the luncheon is for her birthday. I also don't want to have to go to the store if I can help it.

Any and all suggestions appreciated!

Sharon

Current menu:

Appetizer:
Whole Wheat Toasted Pita Points with Goat Cheese and Walnuts, Drizzled with Walnut Oil and Honey

Entree:
Waldorf Chicken Salad served on lettuce leaves with melon and grapes arrayed on plate
Cranberry-Walnut Jell-O Salad
Rosemary-Olive Rolls

Dessert:
Momofuku Crack Pie with Raspberries
Coffee

For the app, lose the walnuts and sub arugula (nutty flavor!) and dried fruit or apples. and i don't really like the oil/honey combo anyway so maybe a good balsamic or sherry vinegar. If your chicken salad has nuts in it, you could just leave them out...not sure how to make recs that won't send you to the store since I have no way of knowing what you have at home...good luck!!

boudreaulicious wrote:For the app, lose the walnuts and sub arugula (nutty flavor!) and dried fruit or apples. and i don't really like the oil/honey combo anyway so maybe a good balsamic or sherry vinegar. If your chicken salad has nuts in it, you could just leave them out...not sure how to make recs that won't send you to the store since I have no way of knowing what you have at home...good luck!!

I do have a lot of basics on hand, and just found a recipe for a tomato-cheddar tart, so might do that for the appetizer, since I can pull 'maters from the vine and basil from my neighbor's plant. I thawed out a whole chicken to roast for the chicken salad, but I can make something warm instead of using cold "parts" for a salad. Many moons ago, I went to a baby shower where one of the items served was called a "warm chicken salad." I've been looking for something similar ever since!!

Thanks for the suggestions.

Sharon

Sunflower or pumpkin seeds on the pita?

The Waldorf is tougher. Water chestnuts can give you crunch, but are essentially flavorless.

You could do a starter of stuffed tomatoes with the goat cheese and basil, puree a bit of the basil with olive oil to dress with some balsamic or any good vinegar. And I still like the chicken salad--there are so many things you can put in it instead of nuts--maybe just change it up from waldorf...since your jello is likely pretty sweet, I'd stick to something that has a bit of acid to counter it--maybe amp up the lemon and add peas or green beans or other veg...tomato tart sounds nice but more as a main...? What about a riff on a nicoise salad with chicken instead of tuna (beans, potatoes, nicoise olives, hard boiled egg, warm vinaigrette?)

boudreaulicious wrote:You could do a starter of stuffed tomatoes with the goat cheese and basil, puree a bit of the basil with olive oil to dress with some balsamic or any good vinegar. And I still like the chicken salad--there are so many things you can put in it instead of nuts--maybe just change it up from waldorf...since your jello is likely pretty sweet, I'd stick to something that has a bit of acid to counter it--maybe amp up the lemon and add peas or green beans or other veg...tomato tart sounds nice but more as a main...? What about a riff on a nicoise salad with chicken instead of tuna (beans, potatoes, nicoise olives, hard boiled egg, warm vinaigrette?)

Oh, the nicoise variation sounds just right!

The Jell-O Salad actually isn't too sweet, in comparison to classics you might have had -- the mix-ins are chopped nuts, celery, whole-berry cranberry sauce, drained crushed pineapple, and almond extract. I took it to a church potluck recently, and one of the members exclaimed, "that's an old salad!" While what she meant was that it was obviously an old =recipe,= I'm afraid some of the other guests had a picture in their minds of a salad that had been sitting around for quite a while ... I ended up taking a fair amount home, which was just fine with DH -- it's his favorite side dish!

When shopping the other day, I noticed for the first time that both the Ocean Spray and store brand of whole berry cranberry sauce were made with HFCS. I try not to buy anything with HCFS, but for today's luncheon I'm stuck with it. A different kind of grocery store would maybe have it made with sugar, so I will keep any eye out for next time I make it, which will most likely be Thanksgiving. Maybe I could even make it from scratch? Will have to investigate!

hot chicken salad

I've had the hot chicken salad at almost every baby/bridal shower I've attended in my home town. You can find some variation of the recipe in any junior league type cookbook. The one on allrecipes is about the same. We always called it the potato chip chicken salad.

nicinchic wrote:hot chicken salad

I've had the hot chicken salad at almost every baby/bridal shower I've attended in my home town. You can find some variation of the recipe in any junior league type cookbook. The one on allrecipes is about the same. We always called it the potato chip chicken salad.

Oh, that sounds disgustingly delicious.

nicinchic wrote:hot chicken salad

I've had the hot chicken salad at almost every baby/bridal shower I've attended in my home town. You can find some variation of the recipe in any junior league type cookbook. The one on allrecipes is about the same. We always called it the potato chip chicken salad.

Thank you -- I will have to fix that and see if it conjures up the taste that I remember! That recipe certainly seems to be from the era of my mother-in-law's Jell-o salad ...

JoelF wrote:Sunflower or pumpkin seeds on the pita?

The Waldorf is tougher. Water chestnuts can give you crunch, but are essentially flavorless.

I ended up calling an audible this morning! My appetizer was my go-to, never-fail White Bean and Kalamata Olive Dip with Stacy's Chips. For the entree, I made a warm potato-chicken salad that is tossed in a simple vinaigrette and served on lettuce. It was good, and I would make it again, but I felt it needed ... something ... maybe some celery, or hard-boiled egg ... something. This recipe only had the potatoes and chicken, with fresh chives sprinkled on top. Dessert was "Tar Heel Pie," another recipe you will see in church/community cookbooks. (I never made it to the Spice House for freeze-dried corn, so that got scratched until I can make it with all the proper ingredients.) Tar Heel Pie has a brownie/fudge type filling with 1/2-cup flour mixed in; the crust magically bakes up as it cooks. My raspberries didn't look great when I opened the clamshell, so I didn't serve them on top.

I was too pooped to take the 2 minutes to whip some cream for the pie, and that would have been a nice addition. As usual, the menu in my head was a mite ambitious for one person to put together in the time frame I allowed myself, but the food was enjoyed and the company was great.

sd--

White bean and kalamata dip? Sounds delish, actually! Would you have a recipe handy, by any chance?? TIA!

Geo

Geo wrote:sd--

White bean and kalamata dip? Sounds delish, actually! Would you have a recipe handy, by any chance?? TIA!

Geo

Why yes, yes I would! This is great with pita chips.

Creamy White Bean and Olive Dip

INGREDIENTS
• One 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained
• 1 cup black olives, preferably kalamata, pitted and roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped
• ¼ cup olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

DIRECTIONS
Combine the beans, olives and garlic in food processor bowl and pulse a few times, just to combine. Gradually pour the olive oil into the food processor, through the feed tube, while running the processor on its lowest setting.

Transfer mixture to a mixing bowl and add the lemon juice, vinegar, herbs and spices. Stir to combine and adjust the seasonings to your preference. Serve immediately with chips and crudités or refrigerate in an airtight container.

Tnx so much! That looks *really* good--it combines some of my favorite things!

Geo

Geo wrote:Tnx so much! That looks *really* good--it combines some of my favorite things!

Geo

You're quite welcome -- enjoy!