Herby Chicken Salad

In honor of this year's Opera in the Outfield, I scoured the internet and my cookbooks for something picnicky. This salad, which uses olive oil instead of mayonnaise and put our little herb garden to good use, was perfect - bright and delicious. Thanks again, Mark Bittman! My variation below:

• 1.75 lb. chicken leg quarters (would be fine with pre-made chicken, too), cooked then meat shredded
• 3-4 shallots (about 4 tbsp.), minced
• 1/4 cup Kalamanta olives, chopped
• 1 tbsp. lemon zest
• 2/3 heaping cup mixed herbs (used mostly basil, with some parsley, chives and thyme), chopped
• 3 tbsp. lemon juice, plus more to taste
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more to taste (ended up using about 1/3 cup)
• salt and pepper to taste

If you aren't using pre-made chicken, cook the meat any way you please. (I poached the legs in about 5 cups of water with onions, garlic, celery, carrots, peppercorns, salt and pepper, then reserved the broth for other uses). Shred the meat.

Mix the chicken, shallots, olives, and lemon zest. Add the herbs, lemon juice and olive oil and mix, then season with salt and pepper to taste.

Refrigerate till cold, then serve either as-is or over a bed of salad greens. (The leftovers were excellent with couscous the next day, too.)