The Potluck Problem

We had a fun pot luck in my neighborhood today, and of course, I forgot it was even going to happen. About 25 minutes before it was going to start, my friend called me up and asked if I was coming. FOOD STORAGE to the rescue. I decided to do the whole, “sneak” food storage into a dish trick. Remember I did this a long time ago with a dessert? I still feel sneaky about that one.

The theme of the pot luck was salads, so I decided to make a pasta salad. I’ve been using my freeze-dried chicken a lot lately. I admit, it’s a little bit due to how busy I’ve been. Having chicken cooked, and cut all ready to go, has saved my eating out budget a few times lately. Isn’t summer supposed to be less busy? Anyways, I made this pasta salad with chicken in it, and it was ready in the 25 (actually 24) minutes from start to finish. I love not having to thaw, cut, and cook chicken, when I’m making a quick summer dish. I’ll share the recipe with you, but you have to remember, I’m not the measuring type- so bear with me- and excuse the dark, after the fact iphone picture.

Julie’s “Healthier” Pasta Salad

Box of whole wheat noodles (can be macaroni, or any kind – my fav is bowtie multi-grain)
1.5 cups of freeze dried chicken (before it reconstitutes)
Chopped celery (you could probably use freeze dried, I just always have fresh on hand)
Light mayo made with olive oil (you can use regular mayo)
Couple of squirts of lemon juice
1 teaspoon or 2 of dill (this gives it a nice flavor)
Salt to taste

Directions:
Cover freeze dried chicken in water to reconstitute. While the chicken is reconstituting boil the noodles. If you’re in a hurry like me, put a metal bowl in the freezer to get it cold (you’ll understand this in a minute). While the noodles are cooking, chop celery and get the rest of the ingredients out. Drain noodles and chicken, paper towel dry and throw it in the cold bowl and put all of that in the freezer for 5 mins to cool everything down. The freezer step is only necessary if you’re working on a fast timeline… But of course you probably all plan ahead better than me? Right? Add mayo to taste- some like it creamier than others. Add the rest of the ingredients, and cool until you have to leave.

So no one even knew I snuck that chicken in there and we made it on time. Success. Remember if you’re looking for ways to sneak food storage into your families foods, or tips on how to substitute out regular ingredients in recipes for food storage ingredients, read these posts.