Buffalo Chicken Salad

Anyone whose been reading this litte blog for a while can probably sense that I have a slight obsession with all things Buffalo Chicken – there were the egg rolls – there were the stuffed peppers – I’ve even thought about incorporating it into dessert (Buffalo Chicken Ice Cream anyone? eh – nah, scratch that idea).

I haven’t always been a Buffalo Chicken lover, but my tastebuds have really come to love a little zing from that orangey glow on a chicken wing or pizza with hot sauce.  So I’ve tried to bring it home to our kitchen and experiment with it as much as possible. The nice thing with Buffalo Chicken too,  is that you can add it’s flavoring to food while still keeping the dish healthy.

So when thinking of what was going to be on the menu for my brown bag lunch this week, I thought “Hmm, chicken salad is a great summer sandwich option” – my co-worker Paula who is my lunch time bud always makes her own and I always think to myself that I should do the same.  Making your own can be nice because you can regulate the amount of mayo that goes in it – I personally only like just a smidgen of it.  While the chicken was cooking though and I was watching Sunday’s episode of Jersey Housewives for the third time in two days, I thought “BUFFALO Chicken Salad would be amazing!”.  So with a dash of this, and a smidge of that, here you have it ladies and gents, Buffalo Chicken Salad.  It’s def a keeper 🙂

Buffalo Chicken Salad

INGREDIENTS
yields about 6 – 1/2 cup servings

3 cups of cooked chicken
( I used 2 large split chicken breasts and used the meat from those – I’d say it was about 3/4 of a lb – 1lb total – but you could just use boneless skinless breasts as well)

3 stalks of celery, diced

1 bunch of scallions minced

5 tbsp. light mayonnaise

1 tbsp. Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
(just the dry mix – you don’t have to make the dressing)

4 tbsp. of Frank’s Hot Sauce
(or more if you like it spicier)

Salt and Pepper to taste

1) Dice up the cooked chicken into your desired size and place in a large mixing bowl.  Set aside.

2)  In a small mixing bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, HVR dressing mix, Frank’s and salt and pepper until fully combined.  Feel free to add Frank’s as you feel necessary.

3)  Add the celery and chopped scallions to the cubed chicken and then toss the chicken/celery/scallion mixture with the dressing.  Let chill for at least 1/2 hour or overnight.

You can serve this on a nice bulkie roll or even just on plain pieces of lettuce if you want to save some extra calories.  Oh is it yum – and fairly healthy as well.  (1/2 cup serving is just about 3 WW points).

Who said you couldn’t spice up your life and your lunch?