Sonoma Chicken Salad on Homemade Whole Wheat Pita Bread

First of all, I hope this post is up and looks normal.  I'm away this weekend, off to visit my family in Worcester, Massachusetts, and I'm staying with my Mom who doesn't have Internet access.  I set up today's post to post automatically, something I've never done before, so my fingers are crossed. 

Chicken salad has always been one of my favourite sandwich fillings and this is the best chicken salad I've ever had.  I could eat this every day.  The sweetness of the grapes, crunch of the celery and pecans, and the creaminess from the mayo makes for one amazing chicken salad.  This stuff is addictive!  This recipe is from my Whole Foods Cookbook.  They serve this chicken salad in their stores and it's extremely popular.  And with good reason.  You really have to try it.  I love eating it on pita bread as it doesn't overwhelm the flavour of the chicken salad.  Pita bread is something I had never made before but will be making all the time now.  They taste wonderful, they're 100% whole wheat and best of all they're easy.  This is an awesome sandwich!

Sonoma Chicken Salad
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Dressing

1 cup mayonnaise
4 tsp. apple cider vinegar
5 tsp. honey
2 tsp. poppy seeds
Salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste

Salad

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3/4 cup pecan pieces, toasted
2 cups red seedless grapes
3 stalks celery, thinly sliced

In a bowl, combine mayonnaise, vinegar, honey, poppy seeds, salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to dress the salad. This can be prepared up to 2 days ahead.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Place the chicken breasts in one layer in a baking dish with 1/2 cup water. Cover with foil and bake 25 minutes until completely cooked through. Remove cooked chicken breasts from pan, cool at room temperature for 10 minutes, then cover and refrigerate.*

*I poached my chicken breasts.

When the chicken is cold, dice into bite-size chunks and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in pecans, grapes, celery and dressing.

Serves 6

Source:  The Whole Foods Market Cookbook

Whole Wheat Pita Bread (Bread Machine)

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1 1/8 cups water (1 cup plus 2 T)

3 cups whole wheat flour

1 tsp. salt

1 T oil

1 1/2 tsp. sugar

1 1/2 tsp. yeast

Place all ingredients in bread pan, select Dough setting, and press Start.

When dough has risen long enough, the machine will beep.  Turn off bread machine, remove bread pan, and turn out dough onto a floured countertop or cutting board.  Gently roll and stretch dough into a 12-inch rope.

With a sharp knife, divide dough into 8 pieces.

Roll each piece into a smooth ball.  With a rolling pin, roll each ball into a 6 to 7 inch circle.  Set aside on lightly floured countertop; cover with a towel.  Let pitas rise about 30 minutes until slightly puffy.

Position oven rack in middle of oven; preheat to 500F.  Place 2 or 3 pitas on a wire cake rack.  Place cake rack directly on oven rack; bake pitas 4 to 5 minutes until puffed and tops begin to brown.  Remove from oven and immediately place pitas in a sealed brown paper bag or cover them with a damp kitchen towel until soft (I covered with a towel).  Once the pitas are softened, either cut in half or split open the top edge for half or whole pitas.  They can be stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for several days or in the freezer for 1 to 2 months.

Source:  Bread Machine Magic