Lynne Rossetto Kasper is a goddess

Okay, maybe a demi-goddess, of food and hospitality, naturally.

We just finished another brilliantly yummy dinner at our house. Our friend Steph joined us, and she said she just had to have a copy of this recipe. Since I was going to be putting together a copy for Steph, I figured I'd share it with everyone.

BTW: I raved about this cookbook a couple of months ago in the "Cookbooks I'm drooling over" column to the right. I couldn't stand to give it back to the library so bought my own copy. It will be one that I turn to often.

We served this with fried rice and a very light (not oak-y) chardonnay. I don't know if this is the pairing that our local wine-guy would recommend, but it worked great for us.

Almond Chutney Chicken in Lettuce Roll-ups

Chicken Salad

One 3-pound roasted chicken
1 medium red onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
Grated zest of 1 large lemon
Juice of 3 large lemons, or more to taste
2 jalapeños, seeded and minced, or hot sauce to taste
One 9-ounce jar Major Grey Chutney, cut into bite-sized pieces if necessary
1/2 cup mayonaise
Salt and fresh-ground black pepper
3 large celery stalks, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 cup whole salted almonds, coarse chopped

Lettuce cups and herbs

1 large head Bibb lettuce, leaves separated, washed and dried
1 large bunch fresh basil, washed and dried
1 large bunch fresh coriander, washed and dried
8 radishes, thin sliced
1 large cucumber, peeled and sliced into thin rounds or 2-inch sticks

1. Pull the meat from the chicken carcass, discarding the skin and bones. Cut it into bite-sized pieces.

2. In a large bowl combine the onions, lemon zest and juice, jalapeños, chutney, mayonnaise, and salt and pepper. Fold in the chicken. Taste the mix for lemon, mayonnaise, and herbs, adding more as needed. Let it stand for 20 minutes to blend flavors, or cover and refrigerate overnight.

3. To serve, blend the celery and nuts into the chicken mixture. Mound the salad at one side of a big platter. Pile up the lettuce leaves at the other side, and cluster the sprigs of herbs in the center. Tuck the radishes and cucumbers next to the herbs.

4. Put a few herb leaves in the bottom of a lettuce "cup," top them with a spoonful of the salad, add a slice each of radish and cucumber, and roll up.