READY IN 2¾ hrs

Chicken Pasta Salad with Cashews and Dried Cranberries

Read Reviews (28)

"Everyone always loves this delicious pasta salad combining fruit, crunchy cashews, scallions, celery, and water chestnuts with chicken. You can't go wrong with this recipe!" — Caitlin

Directions

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain, and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together coleslaw dressing, mayonnaise, and creamy salad dressing.
In a large bowl, combine pasta, chicken, green grapes, red grapes, water chestnuts, celery, and green onions. Stir in dressing, and mix well. Place the salad in the refrigerator to marinate for 2 hours, or overnight. Mix in cashews and dried cranberries just before serving. Serve cold.

Kitchen-Friendly View

PREP 35 mins
COOK 10 mins
READY IN 2 hrs 45 mins

Reviews More Reviews

Most Helpful Positive Review

Sep 28, 2009

I liked this salad but would definitely do differently next time. I prepared this one late night. Had put the cooked chicken, cooked pasta, grapes, and green onions in a bowl with every intention to make that night. However, I ended up going to bed early. The next night, I mixed the cole slaw & mayo ( I omitted miracle whip-instead added extra 1/4 cup mayo and 1/2 tbsp of lawry's seasoning) and added the mayo mixture to the cold pasta then added cranberries & pecans. It looked so yummy I decided to eat some then and it was delicious! However, I made this for the next day and as the recipe suggest, I let it marinate overnight, the next day it was a let down! The flavors just "fell flat". I would suggest prepping the salad, chilling overnight, then adding the dressing! Also, make sure you add the cranberries right before serving as they will turn your salad a grayish color.

—lisa2roberto

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Most Helpful Critical Review

Sep 21, 2008

I took a couple of stars off for the recipe as written here. Since I think Miracle Whip is incredibly gross, I made my own creamy dressing with mayo, sour cream, dijon mustard, honey, garlic, fig vinegar and bit of worcestershire sauce; limited celery and diced it rather than sliced so it wasn't so overpowering; I also used half the grapes indicated; and toasted the cashews. it was fabulous.

—bydesign1

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37 Ratings

Jul 20, 2007

This salad was delicious! I will definitely make it again. I modified it a little by adding 1 cup of mayo instead of ½ cup of mayo and ½ cup of Miracle Whip (I’m not a fan of Miracle Whip), I excluded the red grapes and put only one cup of dried cranberries in it. I used a rotisserie chicken for ease. I love recipes like this – very flavorful and looks great too!

—julie

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May 03, 2008

Wonderful. Took to a family gathering and loved it. Although I added 1 cup of miracle whip, 1 cup of coconut, 1 can of mandarin oranges, and 1 can pineapple tidbits- awesome!!

—Leslee

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May 04, 2008

This recipe is great!! I'm on my second batch in a week. My husband LOVES this! We like a drier salad so I just used the poppyseed dressing and 1/2 mayo and it was just enough. Definitely a keeper

—CDLERNER

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Mar 23, 2008

This was good. I ended up using a whole box of pasta (12oz) because there seemed to be a lot of dressing (and I still didn't make up all the dressing). I did think that next time I'll either put cranberries OR grapes--but, not both. I used pecans because that was what I had on hand (I think cashews may have worked better with the flavor combo of this recipe). With a few changes to reflect our personal tastes, this will make a nice summer pasta salad.

—tizzylizz

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Jul 31, 2009

This salad is fabulous! I tried it at a luncheon, and loved it so much that I requested the recipe, something I rarely do. The only real change, it that our recipe also includes 10 0z.pineapple tidbits. The pinapple is a nice touch!

—Laura

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Jun 10, 2007

this is my kind of recipe. i have a hard time includind any fruit in my dinners.

—trackstar07

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Nutrition

Calories
929 kcal
46%

Carbohydrates
87.9 g
28%

Cholesterol
85 mg
28%

Fat
50.3 g
77%

Fiber
6.8 g
27%

Protein
36.6 g
73%

Sodium
695 mg
28%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Chicken Pasta Salad with Cashews and Dried Cranberries

Serving Size: 1/6 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 6
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 929
Calories from Fat: 453

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 50.3g 77 %
Saturated Fat 9.5g 47 %
Cholesterol 85mg 28 %
Sodium 695mg 28 %
** Potassium 811mg 23 %
Total Carbohydrates 87.9g 28 %
Dietary Fiber 6.8g 27 %
Protein 36.6g 73 %
Sugars 53.4g
Vitamin A 9 %
Vitamin C 20 %
Calcium 9 %
Iron 52 %
** Thiamin 23 %
** Niacin 125 %
** Vitamin B6 45 %
** Magnesium 59 %
** Folate 55 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.