Yelena's Salad

This is my version of Yelena's salad. 

And this is a serving bowl, though I may or may not have eaten most of it by myself. 

Recently, I ate lunch with my friend Yelena, and she treated me to a delicious bowl of salad.

Was it a vegetable salad?
Potato salad?
Chicken salad?
Or some magic elixir of all three?

I didn't know and I didn't care. I ate three helpings and felt no shame.

* * * * *

All afternoon, the memory of each bite haunted me.

And by evening, I decided to make some of this delicious nectar for myself.

Now, I could have called Yelena and asked her to send me the recipe. But that would have been a fairly complicated maneuver.

Yelena's mother tongue is Russian, and her English works best when we are face to face.

And my friend has mastered many tricks of the digital age, but texting me a link to a recipe on Pinterest may be beyond her pay grade.

* * * * *

So rather than cause Yelena any frustration or embarrassment, I decided to conjure up my own version of this recipe:

I sliced up a bunch of radishes and a large cucumber

I cubed and boiled five red potatoes and when they were almost done cooking, tossed in a half a cup of fresh green peas

I boiled two chicken breasts, and shredded them. I should have waited till they were cool.

I whipped together about a cup of mayo and two or three tablespoons of fresh chopped dill, and added a smidge of milk, just enough to make the dressing easier to mix in.

Then I stirred it all together.

And it was good.

* * * * *

To tell you the truth, I'm still not sure if this is a veggie dish or a potato salad or a cold chicken combo but I promise you that paired with some fruit, it makes a fast, easy, and cool summer dinner.

But be forewarned; Yelena's salad is so yummy that you may want to eat three helpings.