Leftover rotisserie chicken, apples, celery, and dried cranberries in a light creamy Greek yogurt based dressing combine to create this light and delicious healthy chicken salad with apples and cranberries.
Which reminds me of a classic Waldorf salad - only lighter - and with chicken.
I served this chicken salad with apples and cranberries for lunch on a bed of mixed greens and baby arugula. And garnished it with a little shredded carrot and chopped cucumber.
All I can say is, "YUM."
I rarely cook chicken just to make chicken salad. It seems like too much work. Instead, it's a recipe I tend to make when there's leftover home cooked or rotisserie chicken staring back at me from the fridge.
To keep this chicken salad with apples and cranberries lighter and healthier, I use plain nonfat Greek yogurt and a little Hellman's light mayonnaise to dress it without drowning it.
Adding apples and celery is a tasty way to add flavor and crunch for minimal calories and points.
This chicken salad with apples and cranberries would be yummy on whole wheat crackers or a toasted english muffin or stuffed into a pita too.
How Many Calories and WW Points in this Chicken Salad?
According to my calculations, each serving has 220 calories and
5 *SmartPoints (Green plan)
3 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)
3 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)
5 *PointsPlus (Old plan)
To see your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, Click here!
This recipe—and dozens more delicious healthy recipes—is available in My Favorite Comfort Foods eCookbook!
Every recipe includes nutritional details and Weight Watchers PointsPlus/Freestyle SmartPoints which and can be downloaded and printed immediately upon purchase. Click here for the details!
Variations:
- No chicken?
Substitute leftover turkey, canned chicken or canned tuna. - No mayonnaise?
Use all plain Greek yogurt instead. - No yogurt?
Use all light mayonnaise instead. - No dried cranberries?
Most any chopped dried fruit would work.
Are You Ready To Firmly Plant Yourself
On The Path To Lasting Weight Loss Success?
If you've made this deliciously low fat Apple Cranberry Chicken Salad, please give the recipe a star rating below and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. And stay in touch on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates.
Healthy Chicken Salad with Apples & Cranberries
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups chopped cooked chicken
- 3 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 cup chopped apple, about 1 large; I used a Pink Lady and kept the peel because it was organic
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons Hellman's light mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley (optional)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place the chicken, celery, apple and cranberries in a bowl and stir to combine and then set it aside.
- In a small bowl (affiliate link), stir together the yogurt, mayonnaise and lemon juice.
- Add this to the chicken mixture and stir to mix well.
- Stir in the parsley if desired. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Equipment
Recipe Notes
*Points® calculated by WW. *PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® calculated by Simple Nourished Living; Not endorsed by Weight Watchers International, Inc. All recipe ingredients except optional items included in determining nutritional estimates. SmartPoints® values calculated WITHOUT each plan's ZeroPoint Foods (Green plan, Blue plan, Purple plan) using the WW Recipe Builder.
If you like this apple cranberry chicken salad, you might also like:
My Favorite Chicken Salad Recipes, including curried chicken salad, Greek grilled chicken salad, chicken avocado salad, mustard broccoli chicken salad, fruited quinoa chicken salad and more.
Creamy Chicken Salad Recipe - with celery, dried cranberries, and smoked almonds dressed in a combination of light mayonnaise and nonfat Greek Yogurt with 13.6 g fat, 14.6 g carbs. 2.8 g fiber, 39.5 g protein and 8 WW Points+ from Cooking Light found at MyRecipes
Curried Chicken Salad with Apples and Raisins - fruit studded chicken salad for two with with 222 calories and 6 WW Points+ from Cooking Light found at MyRecipes
Ellie Kriger's Curried Chicken Salad - with grapes, almonds and cilantro has 325 calories and 6 WW Points+ per serving from Ellie Krieger found at the Food Network
Lighter Chicken Salad - from chicken cooked in broth so it needs less dressing with 4 WW Points+ from Gina at SkinnyTaste
Mango Chicken Salad - with yogurt, fresh mango, and mango chutney with 6 WW Points+ from Alanna at Kitchen Parade.
For More Delicious Weight Watchers Salad Recipes
Martha is the founder and main content writer for Simple-Nourished-Living.
A longtime lifetime WW at goal, she is committed to balancing her love of food and desire to stay slim while savoring life and helping others do the same.
She is the author of the Smart Start 28-Day Weight Loss Challenge.
A huge fan of the slow cooker and confessed cookbook addict, when she's not experimenting in the kitchen, you're likely to find Martha on her yoga mat.
This post contains affiliate links to products I like. When you buy something through one of my Amazon links or other (affiliate links), I receive a small commission that helps support this site. Thank you for your purchase!
Subscribe to Get: Top 10 Reader Favorite Recipes
The Top 10 Most Popular Recipes (PDF) on Simple Nourished Living + Weekly Support Emails with Tips & Easy Healthy Recipes Not Found Anywhere Else!
Katie
This was delicious!! I added a bit of garlic and onion powder to the dressing, then threw it in a low carb wrap with lettuce, swiss cheese, sliced almonds, and a little garlic mayo. Great light but filling meal!
Martha McKinnon
Katie, your wrap sounds delicious!!
Debi
I added garlic powder, onion powder, beaumonde seasoning, tarragon and dill seed. Just a pinch of the last 2.
Tania
I love this! I added some garlic powder & paprika. Look forward to customizing it each time! My question is, can you make it two days ahead of time for an event? And also, how many days can it keep?
Thanks! This will be a new "regular" recipe for me now!
Martha McKinnon
Hi Tania,
Thanks for your comment! I love tweaking recipes and hardly ever make anything the same way twice!! I think it should be fine for 2 or 3 days. Before serving it I would say taste it and adjust your seasoning adding more salt and pepper and whatever else you think it needs. Dishes can change a bit as they sit in the fridge. Hope this helps!
tania
i love this! just made a comment about how this will be a new staple for my house! i added some garlic powder and paprika, but only for fun to tweak it. this can stand alone as is. but it would be fun to tweak each time!
i asked how long it can keep in the fridge and if it's okay to make 2 days ahead of time for an event?
also, i forgot to rate it last time!
Malea
Hi, this says this is 5 & 6 pts plus. Which one is correct? Thanks! Can't wait for lunch!
Martha McKinnon
Hi Malea, I rechecked my WW calculator and it's 5WWPP. I've updated the recipe and post. Sorry about the confusion and hope you enjoy lunch!
DANA G.
THIS WAS ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS. I'VE NEVER LEFT A COMMENT/REVIEW FOR ANY RECIPE, BUT I HAD TO WITH THIS ONE. GREAT JOB! MY HUSBAND LOVES IT.
Martha McKinnon
Hi Dana,
Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! I really really appreciate it 🙂
Louise Douglas
I Martha, I found your recipe on Pinterest because I was looking for this kind of recipe. Yours looks delicious. The only thing I would probably omit is the celery me and celery don't get alone. thanks for sharing this.
Martha McKinnon
Thanks, Louise. Yes, by all means, if celery is not your thing, leave it out!
Natali
I was considering subbing greek yogurt for mayo and just did a quick search to see if that was going to taste really weird, and ended up here. Thanks for sharing! Just thought I'd add - at my house we like to hollow out a bell pepper and fill it with chicken salad. It makes a great to-go meal - we always take them on the river when we go boating!
Martha McKinnon
Hi Natali,
Thanks for sharing. Love the idea of a chicken salad filled pepper!
Toni
I have been doing this same recipe as a staple in my house, but not using the mayo. 1/2 c =1SP Yummy?
Martha McKinnon
Thanks Toni!
Shelley Sterling
I made this salad tonight in a wholewheat wrap. Definitely a keeper. Will try it with nuts next time. Thanks for posting this. Will try some of your other salads another time.
Martha McKinnon
Thanks Shelley! Glad you liked it. Nuts sound like a yummy addition 🙂
decodeit.org
Hi, yeah this paragraph is really nice and I have learned lot
of things from it on the topic of blogging. thanks.
Ann-Marie
I didn't have an apple but used a few extra craisins. Really delicious.
Andrea
How much is a serving for the 5 weight watchers points plus?
Martha McKinnon
Hi Andrea, You'll find all the details in my comfort foods eCookbook: https://simple-nourished-living.com/comfort-food-favorites-ecookbook-smartpoints-pointsplus/
Janis McKinney
how many servings with this recipe? and do you know how many smart points?
Martha McKinnon
Hi Janis, You'll find all the detail in my Comfort Foods eCookbook: https://simple-nourished-living.com/comfort-food-favorites-ecookbook-smartpoints-pointsplus/
Erma Perrin
This is good.Thanks for sharing.
Lynda
Martha.....thank you for the wonderful recipe for chicken salad with cranberries and apples. I am wondering g why I am not seeing the WWsmart points value. Have I missed something?
KAMILLA Lavoie
Hi, how many servings does this make and what is the serving size?
Christine
This was absolutely delicious! I added black grapes along with the cranberries and apples. Equal balance of salt/sweet!
Sandra Gasserlick
I love this recipe!!!! My kids love this too!!! It's my go to for left over chicken. I love bringing this for lunch at work. Thank you for sharing!! This is my all time favorite.
Martha McKinnon
So glad you like it Sandra! Thanks for taking the time to let me know - Martha
Amy
This really good, must try it if you haven't
Bee
Love this recipe!! I switched the dried cranberries for fresh grapes to cut down on sugar and recalculated in my app for a zero point per serving recipe!!! Thanks so much!!!
Jen
approximately what is the serving size? 1/2 cup? 1 cup? thanks!
Martha McKinnon
It's about 1 cup (listed in the nutritional label). - Martha