Autumn Apple Pecan Chicken Salad

A crisp, apple studded, protein rich chicken salad that's perfect for a hearty autumn lunch or even a simple weeknight dinner that won't weigh you down.

It's made healthier with a combination of Greek yogurt and a little mayo, and it pairs beautifully with a hearty whole grain bread. Or you can serve it lower carb over lettuce leaves for another nutritious option.

This version is made with rotisserie chicken but you can use leftover cooked chicken breasts as well. I just recommend that you avoid canned chicken for a better chicken salad.

It's simple to make and worthy of your recipe collection!

Try serving it with baked sweet potato fries or sweet potato chips for a colorful fall pairing.

An upgraded coleslaw that's crunchy, fresh and delicious. Made with cabbage, apples, cranberries and almonds and it's all coated in sweet and tangy dressing. It's the perfect side for BBQ's, parties or picnics!

Apple Slaw Recipe

Who doesn't love coleslaw? It's crunchy, it's creamy, it has just enough sweetness, and it goes with just about anything. It's always quick to be polished off.

Here you get the perfect blend of textures and flavors with the mix-in additions of apples, cranberries, almonds and optional cheese. And it's covered in a more wholesome, lighter Greek yogurt dressing (versus a classic coleslaw dressing that has as much as a cup of mayonnaise in it).

This apple slaw recipe has a pleasant mild flavor to it, but if you'd like a more pronounced flavor you can add in a tablespoon of dijon mustard to the dressing.

And if you want to skip a step and go with a shortcut, you can use a coleslaw mix in place of the shredded cabbage and carrots. Also just chop the apples instead of getting paticular and cutting into matchsticks to save time.

I think it's time for pulled pork or pulled chicken sandwiches this week for dinner, don't you? And then of course this homemade coleslaw to go with it!

It's truly the perfect accompaniment to roast turkey or roast chicken.

The Best Cranberry Sauce Recipe!

Is there anything like a delicious, made from scratch Thanksgiving or Christmas meal? Chances are most of us have settled for the stuff that comes out of a can or a box, and that's just it, it's settling.

If you've been one of those people that has been settling, I would highly recommend this year you give the homemade alternative to the pre-packaged and processed Thanksgiving foods a try. The two are a night and day difference.

Canned cranberry sauce and homemade cranberry sauce just don't even compare.

One comes in the shape of a can while it's homemade opponent has a spoonable texture and tastes like fresh fruit. And the homemade sauce isn't jelly like, it's perfectly sauce-like, the way it's meant to be.

I look forward to this every year! Try it and you'll never look back, trust me!

Easy Spinach Salad with Cranberries and Almonds

This salad is a breeze to make and the only chopping required is for the shallot, gotta love that!

Fresh spinach is layered with chewy dried cranberries, crisp sliced almonds, and a sweet and simple toasted sesame seed vinaigrette.

The Perfect Kale Salad Recipe!

Thanks to this refreshing kale salad, I've finally found a way to eat raw kale and have it actually taste good! We couldn't get over how delicious this salad was and I'm already thinking of when I'll be making it again!

The flavor of the dressing, thanks to the lemon juice and honey in it, really helps tone down the somewhat harsh flavor of the raw kale. Plus, it also just compliments all of the others flavors in this salad - like that of the quinoa, walnuts, apples and goat cheese.

This is the perfect side at dinner to roasted chicken and mashed or roasted potatoes. It's also the perfect salad to bring to a party.

Originally shared Sept. 2016.

Ingredients You'll Need

• Tricolor quinoa
• Curly kale
• Apples
• Walnuts
• Cranberries
• Goat cheese
• Olive oil
• Lemon
• Honey
• Dijon

Are There Substitutions?

• Regular brown quinoa is fine in place of the tricolor
• Pecans could replace the walnuts.
• Feta could replace the goat cheese.
• Baby kale or lacinato kale can be used in place of curly kale, but do note that it won't require a resting period and may not hold up as long.

How to Make This Easy Kale Salad

• Cook quinoa according to directions on package and cool completely.
• Whisk together all of the dressing ingredients in a jar or bowl.
• Add kale to a salad bowl, whisk dressing once more then pour 3/4 of the dressing over kale and toss until kale is evenly coated. Chill 15 minutes.
• Add apples, quinoa, walnuts and cranberries.
• Pour remaining dressing over salad then toss. Add goat cheese, toss gently.

Tips for This Salad

• Use sweet apples to balance the tartness of the lemon. Use pretty red onions for a pretty color contrast.
• Let the dressing rest on the kale to help soften those not so tender leaves.
• Store it in the fridge up to 4 hours. Finally a salad that holds up well for a while!

More Kale Recipes You'll Love!

Pear Salad

The salad has the perfect balance of sweet and tart, and I love the blend of textures. It's one of those easy to throw together recipes that is set to impress everyone at the dinner party.

Everyone loves a good strawberry salad but fall needs its own seasonal salad and this should be it!

Try it soon while pears are in their seasonal prime! 

Cranberry Cookies Dipped in Chocolate

I'm also crazy about all those little bits of cranberries in each bite! Chopping the dried cranberries up first ensures that their flavor is evenly spread out - plus that way you don't get big chunks in some bites and none in others.

And here I chose to use the cherry juice infused cranberries. If you can't find the cherry version the plain will work great as well. I just love that triple flavor combo of cranberry, cherry and chocolate.

Right about now I'm just wondering where these cookies have been all my life. They are definitely going to be a new go-to holiday cookie!

The adults loved them and the kids loved them too. The flavor reminds me something of cherry chocolates in cookie form.

Delicious Green Bean Recipe

You get those tender crisp green beans, chewy dried cranberries, crunchy walnuts and that soft and tangy feta cheese. It's not your typical salad or green bean dish but it's so nice to have new options for a change!

Pasta Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

This year I've been allll about those pasta salads! I didn't fully appreciate them until the last few years so I guess I'm just catching up.

And now I'm thinking of fun pasta salad flavors I've never tried before, like this perfectly delicious Poppy Seed Chicken and Grape Pasta Salad!

I'll always go for a good poppy seed dressing when it's an option so I knew it would be good added to a pasta salad, I also really love this Poppy Seed Chicken Salad recipe of mine.

So I combined those two ideas together and here you are left with a perfectly summery super tasty pasta salad! It's such a great side dish to serve at all your summer cookouts.

Don't Leave Out the Almonds!

For this recipe I used Fisher Sliced Almonds and they are a key ingredient here. I love that they are preservative free and I also love the resealable packaging that helps them stay fresh!

My family likes to snack on them plus we add them to so many things.

My husbands favorite way to use them is in his protein smoothies, they blend up easily and they give it a creamy texture and make it more filling. And one of my favorite way to use them is in salads, like so.

I love that they are thinly sliced so you get that perfect thin bite with each piece for multiple layers of crunch!

How do I Make this Poppy Seed Chicken Pasta Salad?

• Cook pasta, drain and rinse then set aside to cool.
• Whisk together dressing ingredients in a bowl.
• To a salad bowl add drained pasta, chicken, grapes, celery, almonds, green onions and cranberries.
• Pour dressing over and toss to coat, season with salt and pepper.
• Chill at least 30 minutes.

Allow Time for the Pasta Salad to Rest

Once you add the dressing there will seem like there's too much, there's not, it just needs time to rest and allow the pasta to absorb some of the dressing. So be sure to give it at least 30 minutes to rest.

Can I Reduce the Sugar?

If you aren't generally a big fan of the sweetness of poppy seed dressing then you can reduce the sugar or even omit it in this recipe. But I liked the unique sweetness it gave this pasta salad, plus it gives it that traditional flavor of poppy seed dressing.

Can I Make it Ahead of Time?

You can make this a day an advance and it's still so delicious. That's one of the great things about most pasta salads is that they can be made ahead.

More Summer Recipes You'll Love

• Strawberry Lemonade
• Slow Cooker Ribs
• Potato Salad

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Fisher nuts. The opinions and text are all mine.

Broccoli Apple Salad

There are only a few ways you can get me to eat raw broccoli and actually enjoy it. It either needs to be mixed into a salad like so or dunked into a really good dip.

This delicious Broccoli Apple Salad is one of the best ways you can enjoy fresh broccoli! Plus it's packed with nutritious ingredients! I also made it lighter (as I frequently like to with dressings) by substituting plain Greek yogurt for some of the mayonnaise.

The Dressing

Don't get me wrong, I love mayo. My go to brand of mayonnaise is Hellman's (AKA Best Foods in some states). I always have a full-fat version of it and a light version stocked in my fridge. I use it for countless things, from sandwiches, to dressings, to salmon, to chicken salads and so forth.

It's a pantry (or in this case refrigerator) staple. I love the rich creaminess the full-fat version offers to this salad. By using the ratio of 1/3 cup regular mayo to 3/4 cup Greek yogurt, you can still keep a healthy balance without compromising great flavor.

Tips For Making This Broccoli Apple Salad

• Because the ingredients in this salad are raw it doesn't wilt so easily. You can make this in the morning and pack it in lunch containers for work, school or picnics. You can even make the dressing the night before to reduce morning prep time.
• If you don't have walnuts then cashews would be a good substitute
• You could also try adding some blue cheese (great with apple and walnuts)
• Go for sweet apples such as gala apples rather than sharp and sour ones

More Salads You You'll Love!

• Broccoli Carrot And Cauliflower Salad
• Apple Cranberry And Almond Coleslaw
• Potato Salad
• Pear Bacon And Brussels Sprouts Salad