Drizzle the chicken breasts with olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper. Bake on a cookie sheet in a preheated 350 F oven for 35-40 minutes. Cool. Remove skin and bones, shred meat, set aside.

Toast sesame seeds and slivered almonds in a nonstick pan over medium high heat for 5-10 minutes or until they begin to brown. Remove from heat, set aside.

In a small jar with a tight fitting lid, combine the salt, sugar, vinegar, black pepper, olive oil and sesame oil. Shake until everything is well combined. Set aside.

In a large bowl, add the lettuce, green onion, chow mein noodles, toasted sesame seeds and slivered almonds and the cooked chicken.

Pour dressing over the salad and gently toss. Serve immediately. The dressing will make the salad soggy if you mix it too early, so toss right before serving.

In warm soapy water, wash and dry your glass jars and lids. You can use any size jars that you have handy as long as they have a tight fitting lid.

Thinly slice the cucumbers and onion using the slicing attachment from a food processor. You may cut the vegetables by hand, but be sure to get them very thin with a uniform consistency. If they are different thicknesses, they will absorb unequal amounts of the seasonings.

Layer the cucumber, onion, garlic and green pepper (optional sliced jalapeno) in your jar; making three layers, ending with the cucumber as the top layer. Firmly press the layers into the jar to pack in as much as possible. Leave 1“space (headroom) at the top of the jar.

In a medium sauce pan, whisk together the vinegar, sugar, salts, peppers and mustard seed (optional). Cook over medium high heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar is dissolved into the brine. Remove from heat.

Slowly and carefully pour the warm liquid into the jar, allowing it to be absorbed in the spaces and by the veggies until the jar is full. Tighten the lid. Refrigerate overnight to allow the flavors to mix.

Cut chicken into bite size pieces no larger than 1”. If you are using a precooked rotisserie chicken, remove the skin and bones before cutting the meat.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat for about 2 minutes. If you are using a precooked rotisserie chicken, you can skip this step as the chicken is already cooked.

Add the uncooked cubed chicken breasts to the skillet and cook for 5 minutes or until the meat is cooked through and you can no longer see pink. (I like to sauté my chicken in a seasoned cast iron skillet. Then I can skip the adding the oil)

Remove cooked meat from the pan and set on a plate.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chopped onions and peppers. Sauté for 4-5 minutes or until the onions are translucent. Add cilantro pesto. Stir. Remove skillet from heat.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

If you’re not using the paper cupcake liners, grease muffin cups or mini Bund pans with Wilton’s cake release.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Wash chicken and pat dry. Place chicken breasts on a baking sheet and drizzle both sides with olive oil. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper and roast in oven, uncovered, for 35 minutes or until meat is cooked through. Set aside. When cool, remove skin and bones and shred/dice chicken. You should have 2 ½ - 3 lbs cooked, shredded chicken.

Preheat the oven to 350 F

Wash the chicken and pat dry.

Place the chicken on a baking sheet and drizzle both sides of each breast with olive oil.

Sprinkle the meat generously with salt and pepper, or whatever seasoning you prefer. Amazingly, the chicken is quite tasty with only salt and pepper seasoning. You really don’t need anything else.

Roast for 35-40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

If the chicken is for another recipe, set it aside and allow it to cool before removing the skin, bones and cutting the meat into smaller cubes. You will have about 6 cups of cooked chicken when you’re finished.

Combine diced potatoes, onion, chicken stock and cream of chicken soup in a crock pot, kettle or microwave safe dish.

Cover and cook in slow cooker on low 8-10 hours, on high 4-5 hours, or on stove or in microwave until potatoes are tender. It doesn’t matter how you cook the mixture so long as the potatoes cook in the broth and are covered while they cook.

Remove half of the cooked potatoes and set aside.

Add the cream cheese and blend mixture with cream cheese until smooth in consistency. Use an upright blender, hand held blender or food processor to achieve a uniform consistency.

Add back potatoes and any other ingredients you would like to add (basil pesto, cooked sausage, corn, peppers, etc)

Top with crumbled bacon and chives before serving.

Mixing the ingredients on a warmed platter will help them melt quickly to make a satiny sauce. For the best results, use dried pasta, which doesn't break as easily during tossing as fresh egg pasta does.

Bring a 6-qt. pot of salted water to a boil. Add fettuccine and cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta is al dente, about 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut butter into thin pats and transfer to a large, warmed platter. Drain pasta, reserving 3/4 cup pasta water, and place the pasta over the butter on the platter.

Sprinkle grated parmesan over the pasta and drizzle with 1/4 cup of the reserved pasta water.

Using a large spoon and fork, gently toss the pasta with the butter and cheese, lifting and swirling the noodles and adding more pasta water as necessary. (The pasta water will help create a smooth sauce.) Work in any melted butter and cheese that pools around the edges of the platter. Continue to mix the pasta until the cheese and butter have fully melted and the noodles are coated, about 3 minutes. (For a quicker preparation, bring the reserved 3/4 cup pasta water and the butter to a boil in a 12" skillet; then add the pasta, sprinkle with the cheese, and toss with tongs over medium-low heat until the pasta is creamy and coated, about 2 minutes.)

Serve the fettuccine immediately on warmed plates.