Rocky Mountain Cooking

Good Food With Altitude

  • Home
  • About Heather
    • Blogs I Love
  • Contact

Don't miss a single recipe or tip - Enter your email to receive free updates in your inbox!

Navigation
  • Home
  • Recipes
    • Breakfast Goodness
    • Beverages
    • Appetizer’s and Small Plates
    • Soups and Stews
    • All Things Chili
    • Salads and Salad Dressings
    • Side Dishes
    • Main Courses
    • On the Grill
    • Desserts
  • Special Occasions
    • Events and Parties
    • Football Fest Recipes
    • Don’t Buy It, Make It
  • High Altitude Cooking
You are here: Home / Appetizer's and Small Plates / Southwestern Chicken Salad

Southwestern Chicken Salad

September 11, 2016 By cookingintherockies 6 Comments

24 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet
Southwestern Chicken Salad

Not your average chicken salad…Southwestern Chicken Salad is packed with tons of flavor and summer veges! So delish!

Truth be known, I am Heather and I am a chicken salad junkie. This week like many, I needed to make something that I could literally eat all week. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, whatever. It needed to be quick and easy. I decided to change my normal chicken salad up a bit so I added some southwest spices, a bunch of Cholula for great flavor with just a little added heat, tons of veges and just a tiny amount of mayo. Southwestern Chicken Salad, is now my favorite chicken salad. It’s so over the top yummy (and pretty darn healthy)  that it may be your new favorite too! I also made another batch for our after tennis picnic with the ladies. The eight of us polished off the whole bowl of it! We served it tortilla chips instead of making sandwiches which turned out to be a great accompaniment. It was kinda like chips and (chicken salad) dip! Just an idea for a way to serve it up! Enjoy it!

So yesterday, I had one of my top five experiences in my lifetime. I was lucky enough and so grateful to be included in the Boss Airlift program. What is a Boss Airlift, you may ask? Well, this program is provided by the Colorado National Guard and sponsored by ESGR (Employer Support of The Guard And Reserve). ESGR’s vision is to “foster a culture in which all employers support and value the employment and military service of members of the National Guard and Reserve in the United States“. I learned so much yesterday and the importance of our National Guard and Reserve. Not only in terms of National Security but in how they serve our communities on so many levels. Our businesses are such an integral part of supporting our patriotic service man and women continue to serve our country and our local community. When they say it “takes a village”, it really does. A big shout out to businesses who recognize and embrace this, hiring military personal knowing that they are essential to the strength of our Nation and the community. I was very humbled yesterday being in the presence of our military men and women. This was a first time for me being on a military base and learning what they do and the roles that they play was awe inspiring. Each person plays a specific role that serves the greater purpose.  I have always been a supporter of our military but now knowing what I do, my admiration and gratitude has grown deeper. As we remember 9/11 today make a point to think about our military members and their courage, sacrifices and love of country to keep us all safe.

Along with knowledge that we gained yesterday… The Colorado National Guard provided us with an experience of a lifetime! Check out my pictures below. I mentioned top five experience… Riding shot gun in the cock pit of a Chinook helicopter made that list. I’m still pinching myself that I was lucky enough to take part in something like this. Enjoy the pictures. It was a perfect late summer Colorado day!


 

Southwestern Chicken Salad
Recipe Type: Main Course
Cuisine: Southwestern
Author: Heather Blake
Nothing beats a good chicken salad! This Southwestern Chicken Salad may just become your new favorite!
Ingredients
  • 4 cups cooked chicken (I used about 2 rotisserie chickens)
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 2 cups corn (I used two ears of corn, cooked and kernels removed)
  • 1/2 cup red onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cup celery, diced
  • 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
  • 1/2 cup pumkin seeds (or substitute toasted almond slices)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/2 cup Cholula hot sauce
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients except for the pumpkin seeds (or almonds) and combine well.
  2. Before serving stir in the pumpkin seeds or almonds. Top with fresh cilantro.
Notes
This recipe can be made the day before and stored in the refrigerator. Add the seeds or the nuts just before serving so that stay crunchy.
3.5.3226
Southwestern Chicken Salad

Getting ready to load up! Wow! So exciting!

Southwestern Chicken Salad

The inside of a Chinook helicopter.. Betcha never seen that before!

Southwestern Chicken Salad

Maybe for a million dollars I’d do this!

Southwestern Chicken Salad

Garden of the Gods as seen from above! It’s stunning from this view too!

Southwestern Chicken Salad

Pikes Peak is just massive! We are actually headed to the west side of this mountain. Aka.. the other side.

Southwestern Chicken Salad

Who would have known. They keep pigs on the base to keep the rattlesnakes away. This goes to the saying, “you learn something new everyday”!

Southwestern Chicken Salad

A friend of mine took this picture… Can you imagine being this close to an F16 dropping inert bombs? A sight to been seen and heard! Wow!

Southwestern Chicken Salad

Selfie of me in the cockpit looking back! So cool!

Southwestern Chicken Salad

View from the cockpit. No wonder why pilots love flying in Colorado. Not a bad view for this to be your office.

Southwestern Chicken Salad

This is just cool..

Filed Under: All things Chili, Appetizer's and Small Plates, Events and Parties, Football Fest Recipes, Main Courses, Protein Dishes, Recipes, Salads and Salad Dressings Tagged With: Bosslift, chicken salad, chicken salad recipe, Cholula, Cholula recipe, Colorado National Guard, Never forget 9/11, Rocky Mountain Cooking, Rocky Mountains, Southwestern Chicken Salad, Southwestern Chicken Salad recipe

« Fireball Whiskey Peach Bread Pudding
Colorado Green Chili »

Comments

  1. Gladys Pilz says

    September 14, 2016 at 6:23 PM

    Made this delish salad tonight! Did not have hot sauce on hand so I used salsa…I also made corn tortilla “crouton” strips which added another layer of crunch with New Mexico seasonings. Great recipe lady! Muchas gracias…

    Reply
    • cookingintherockies says

      September 17, 2016 at 7:14 PM

      Great idea Gladys! Always fun to experiment! Miss seeing you! 🙂

      Reply
  2. Larry says

    September 12, 2016 at 9:38 AM

    What a great experience you had. I got to do that back in the 80’s and we flew on a KC-135 tanker out off the coast of Myrtle Beach and refueled a group of fighters from the SC Nat Guard. It was awesome laying there beside the boom operator as the jets took turns coming in for a fill up. Your chicken salad sounds killer.

    Reply
    • cookingintherockies says

      September 17, 2016 at 7:16 PM

      Wow! Your experience sounds amazing! We are so lucky, so few people have done this! Chicken salad, awesome, just got more chilies today!

      Reply
  3. Lea Ann says

    September 11, 2016 at 12:29 PM

    What a fabulous experience. Love your photos. And I love that pigs keep rattlesnakes away. Had no idea! Your salad sounds really good Heather.
    Lea Ann recently posted…Butter Lettuce Peach Salad with Peach Pistachio VinaigretteMy Profile

    Reply
    • cookingintherockies says

      September 17, 2016 at 7:16 PM

      Such a fun day! I love the pigs…

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

Food Advertising by logo

Welcome!


Welcome to Rocky Mountain Cooking! A place to explore Colorado Food and Lifestyle! Pull up a chair, pour a glass of wine and explore all kinds of great recipes! [learn more]

Image Map

Recipes & Posts

Food Advertising by logo

Recent Comments

  • Dan on Sticky Chinese Barbecue Ribs
  • Peach-y Keen - Taste the Best of the Summer - The Second Proof on Fresh Peach Nectar
  • What To Do With Leftover Beef Brisket? on Beef Brisket Street Tacos
my foodgawker gallery
Food Advertising by logo
Amazing sausage stuffing with dried fruit, almonds and yes my friends Grand Marnier!

Grand Marnier Stuffing

November 21, 2024 By cookingintherockies 9 Comments

Continue Reading

Follow Rocky Mountain Cooking!

Follow Us on FacebookFollow Us on Google+Follow Us on WordpressFollow Us on RSS

Recent Posts

  • Grand Marnier Stuffing
  • Colorado Chicken Pizza with Cheesy White Sauce
  • Pulled Pork & Bacon Jalapenos
  • Cheese Dumpling Soup- Käsenodelsuppe
  • Green Chili Cholula Meatloaf
  • Lasagna Soup
  • Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms
  • Stuffed Mushrooms
  • Maple Bourbon Glazed Turkey
  • Roasted Squash and Sweet Potatoes with Cranberries
  • Tour of America’s Heartland
  • Bahn Mi Won Ton Cups
  • Anzac Biscuits
  • Old Fashioned Sorghum Cookies
  • Mexican Picadillo

Recent Comments

  • Dan on Sticky Chinese Barbecue Ribs
  • Peach-y Keen - Taste the Best of the Summer - The Second Proof on Fresh Peach Nectar
  • What To Do With Leftover Beef Brisket? on Beef Brisket Street Tacos
  • Stacy on Limoncello
  • Mary on Hawaiian Chicken Meatballs

Find Recipes

Archives

NetworkedBlogs
Blog:
RockyMountainCooking
Topics:
Food, Recipes, Colorado
 
Follow my blog
Welcome to Rocky Mountain Cooking! A place to explore Colorado Food and Lifestyle! Pull up a chair, pour a glass of wine and explore all kinds of great recipes! [learn more]
Image Map

Recent Recipes

Amazing sausage stuffing with dried fruit, almonds and yes my friends Grand Marnier!
Colorado Chicken Pizza with Cheesy White Sauce
Pulled Pork & Bacon Jalapeno Poppers
Cheese Dumpling Soup- Grießnockerlsuppe
A picture of Green Chili Cholula Meatloaf with some fresh peas on the side.
Lasagna Soup
Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms
A picture of spinach stuffed mushrooms
Maple Bourbon Glazed Turkey
A picture of Roasted Squash and Sweet Potatoes with Cranberries on a plate ready for Service.

Copyright © 2025 Rocky Mountain Cooking | Developed by Archer Creative | Privacy Policy

24 shares
Go to mobile version