Tea Room Recipe #5 - Miss Mable's Tea Room (Dickson, Tenn.)

One of my all-time favorite tea rooms was Miss Mable's in Dickson, Tenn. My girlfriend Beth and I made a special overnight trip to Tennessee just to go to the tea room, and it was definitely worth every mile we traveled to get there! The house was lovely, the food was scrumptious (an excellent heart-shaped scone glistening with sugar crystals stands out in my memory), and I particularly remember the gracious proprietress, Fay Davidson. I also remember a magnificent gift shop, a series of gift shops, really, and all that together made this a memorable tea room.

Naturally, I came home with a cookbook, and since Miss Mable's closed in 2009, I am most grateful for my book!

I seem to be drawn to comfort food this winter, and this recipe for Hot Chicken Salad greatly appealed to me. The funny thing is, it calls for a potato chip topping, and I almost never eat potato chips (my weakness is sweets, not salt), but the potato chips made this oh-so-good. I definitely recommend you serve this sometime when the hot, crispy-topped dish will be eaten up on the spot!

Hot Chicken Salad

3 cups chicken, cooked and chopped (I used boneless chicken breasts)
2 (10-3/4-ounce) cans cream of chicken soup
1 medium onion, chopped
3/4 cup celery, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste (go light on the salt; this dish has plenty!)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
1 to 1-1/2 cups shredded Swiss or cheddar cheese (I used 1 cup of cheddar)
2 cups potato chips, crushed

Mix all ingredients except cheese and chips and pour into an 8- or 9-inch-square casserole dish prepared with cooking spray. Top with cheese, then chips, and bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes. Yields 6 large servings. Would be great as a "ladies luncheon" entree!