Island-Style Chicken Macaroni Salad

July 14: Macaroni Day

Macaroni salad is a popular side dish scooped onto plate lunches in the Hawaiian Islands.  This version is fortified with chicken and sweetened with pineapple, pickle relish, raisins and condensed milk and mixed with vibrant vegetables to embody Hawaii’s colorful rainbows and ethnic melting pot. Islander’s Mommy sometimes makes this island-style chicken macaroni salad as a light lunch in itself instead of as a side dish. This pasta is perfect for plate lunches and especially for Macaroni Day.

Recipe

(From Mommy)

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups cooked macaroni
• 2 cooked chicken breasts
• 2 celery stalks
• 1 carrot, washed and peeled
• 1 20-ounce can crushed pineapple, juice drained
• 2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
• 1 packet of raisins
• ¼ – ½ cup mayonnaise (we recommend fat-free or light)
• ¼ – ½ cup sweetened condensed milk (we used fat-free)

Directions

Cook the macaroni al dente according to the package directions. Drain well and set aside to cool.  Shred or chop the chicken into small pieces. Cut the celery stalk into slivers. Grate the carrot. In a large bowl, put the chicken, celery, carrot and drained pineapple and mix well.

Gently add the macaroni to the bowl with the other ingredients. Stir in the pickle relish and raisins. Mix in the mayonnaise and condensed milk. Put the macaroni salad in a container. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour to allow the flavors to blend. To serve, scoop onto plates.

Paganens (Algonquin Wild Nut Soup)

July 14: Feast Day of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha

For a simple yet savory soup, prepare paganens (Algonquin wild nut/hazelnut soup) for the American Feast Day of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha. The candidate for canonization is the daughter of an Algonquin Christian woman, Kahente (Kahontáke or Wahwahsekona), so we chose paganens for this blog recipe post.  The “Lily of the Mohawk” is also the daughter of a Mohawk chief, Kenneronkwa, so we made Mohawk milk cake for her Canadian Feast Day on April 17. Serve this soup and the cake together for a double dose of down-to-earth deliciousness.

Recipe

(Modified from The Gutsy Gourmet and In Mama’s Kitchen)

Ingredients

• 1 cup raw hazelnuts (filberts)
• 3 large shallots, peeled and sliced
• 1 tablespoon corn or vegetable oil
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 1½  tablespoons parsley, chopped
• ½ teaspoon salt
• pinch of black pepper

Directions

Toast the hazelnuts (filberts) in the oven by spreading them on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 15 minutes. Cool slightly. Rub off the skins with a towel. Coarsely chop the nuts into pieces.

In a large pot, sauté the shallots in oil until tender. Pour in the vegetable stock and mix the shallots in the liquid. Add the nuts, parsley, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, stir, then simmer the soup on low heat for 1½ hours to soften the nuts and blend the flavors. Some similar soup recipes end the cooking process at this point and serve it as a hearty dish.

Other similar soup recipes have additional steps to liquefy the soup before serving. Transfer the contents of the pot in small batches to a food processor or blender and puree until smooth. Pour the soup in a sieve over the pot to remove the grit from the puree. Simmer on low heat to keep it warm. Ladle the soup in bowls. Garnish with parsley and serve.

Notes

• The fabric for the photo background is from a Kiowa-Apache skirt purchased from a pow-wow in Oklahoma. The soup bowl is adorned with a beaded Pueblo necklace purchased at a museum gift shop in Arizona.