Summer time calls for light, casual lunches. It is the perfect excuse to eat traditional picnic fare, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Being a lady who lunches, I love a great lunch out, but sometimes a party at home is much more intimate. My mom (the original PH) makes this salad year round, but it seems to pop up more when we’re in Nantucket. I don’t know if it’s just because its summer time and we have more lunch parties or what… but I’m definitely not complaining.

A traditional chicken salad recipe can be utterly boring and flavorless. This recipe for Nantucket Chicken Salad has flavors that are so enhanced – it is not your grandmother’s chicken salad. Fresh, organic chicken, dried cranberries, toasted almonds, scallions, parsley and for a little crunch celery; are combined with small amount of mayonnaise for a quick yet gourmet lunch. I love to serve this on miniature croissants but any type of bread will suffice. This salad can also be served on top of a plate of mixed greens, if bread isn’t your thing. Grab the biggest straw hat you can find and put on sundress ladies – it’s the weekend… which calls for a lunch party.