I was sitting down for lunch with a friend from South Africa, she questioned various items on the menu of one of my favorite local pubs.

“What is chicken salad?” she inquired. “Is it a salad with chicken or something else?”

Since I’ve grown up with old-fashioned Southern chicken salad with mayonnaise and lots of pickle, I immediately thought of the creamy sandwich spread of my childhood. But then I remembered all the delicious green salads with grilled, roasted, blackened or fried chicken served atop. I understood her confusion.

That conversation made me think about one of my favorite dinner salads: big, leafy greens with homemade chicken salad and lots of blueberries and tomatoes. I hope you will enjoy this as much as I do. The chicken portion can be prepared up to 24 hours ahead. Enjoy!

Chicken Salad for Two

1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast, about 2/3
pound
1 large egg
1/2 cup celery, diced
11/4 cups pickle relish
1/4 cup real mayonnaise
1/8 teaspoon salt
Dash black pepper
2 cups field greens,

washed and dried
1 cup fresh blueberries, or
other berry of choice
1 large tomato, sliced
1/2 cup cucumber, sliced
Bottled vinaigrette, if
desired

Place chicken and egg in a large pot. Add just enough cold tap water to cover. Cover pot and bring to a boil over high heat.

When water comes to a boil, uncover the pot and boil 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 15 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in the center. Immediately remove chicken and egg from pot to cool, about 15 minutes. Discard broth or reserve for another use.

Fit a food processor with the steel blade and process the chicken by cutting it into 4 pieces; process about 5 seconds, then pulse the motor 3 or 4 more times, just until the breast is shredded but not finely ground. Place the chicken in a 2-quart mixing bowl.

Peel egg; place in processor and pulse 3 to 5 times, or until egg resembles coarse crumbs. (Don’t go too far or you’ll have a paste.) Add egg to bowl with chicken.

Add celery, sweet pickle, mayonnaise, salt and pepper. Stir well, until all chicken is coated with mayonnaise. Serve at once over the bed of greens with berries, tomato and cucumber, or refrigerate until ready to serve, up to 8 hours. Top with dressing if desired.

Approximate values per serving: 605 calories, 35 g fat (7 g saturated), 238 mg cholesterol, 49 g protein, 19 g carbohydrates, 4 g dietary fiber, 664 mg sodium. – Alicia Ross is the co-author of “Desperation Dinners!