Greek Night 2016!

 

We love doing our theme nights, and one of our absolute favorite theme nights is our mini Greek Festival. Salt Lake City, Utah has an absolutely fantastic Greek Festival at the beginning of every September with the most amazing Greek food imaginable. However, I haven't been in years because we can't go as a family because my oldest son is allergic to tree nuts (and Greek food, mostly desserts, have a ton of tree nuts in them...I'm looking at you, Baklava). Also, my husband and I just never seem to be able to get away that first weekend in September for a date night to the Greek Festival. However, We have our fantastic family Greek Night and it really satisfies that craving for Greek food.

I'm including the recipes we made on this particular night as well as some of our tried and true favorites from other nights (just so we have them all in one place). You can also check out these other Greek food posts that we have made in the past: original post for Greek Meatballs, Greek Lemon Potatoes, and Avgolemono Soup here, Slow Cooker Greek chicken here, Pastitsio here, Greek Quinoa Salad here, first version of Chicken Souvlaki here, second version of Chicken Souvlaki here, Chicken Gyros (kind of the third version of Chicken Souvlaki) and Lemon Rice here, Slow Cooker Chicken Gyros here, Meat Loaf Gyros here, Greek Orzo Salad here, Greek Tacos here, and Galatoboureko (Greek Milk Pie) here...that's all...for now, at least! Yeah, we're not Greek, but we love our Greek food!

Baked Feta

Ingredients:

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup Kalamata olives (pitted and chopped)
1 clove garlic, minced
2-3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley, divided
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound block Greek feta
4 scallions, sliced
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, for serving
Bell peppers, sliced, for serving
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a bowl, mix the tomatoes, olives, garlic, 2 tablespoons parsley, oregano, olive oil, and a few grinds of pepper.

Place the block of feta in the middle of an 8x8-inch baking dish. Pile the tomato mixture on top of the feta. Bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese has softened and melted.

Remove from the oven and garnish with the remaining parsley and scallions and serve immediately while still warm. This can be placed back in the oven to melt if the cheese starts to firm up again. Serve with peppers and grilled shrimp.

To grill the shrimp: Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium-high heat. Season shrimp with salt and pepper and grill for 2 minutes per side, or until shrimp is opaque. Serve.

Recipe Notes: This dish is best served hot, warm, or room temperature.

Source: The Chew, recipe by Michael Symon. You can find it here.

Notes: We did not serve this with the bell peppers and shrimp. We served this with homemade pita chips. Baked feta is a fantastic, wonderful thing. I highly suggest you try it!

 

Spicy Baked Feta (Feta Psiti)

Ingredients:

1 (8 ounce) block feta cheese
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flakes, or as needed
1 pinch dried oregano, or as needed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Place the feta in an ovenproof baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil. Cover liberally with pepper flakes, and sprinkle with oregano.

Bake, uncovered, in the preheated oven until feta is soft, about 10 minutes.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Diana Moutsopoulos. You can find it here.

Notes: This was so, so good. It's hard to say which baked feta I liked better...you might just have to make both of them like we did! Again, we served this with homemade pita chips.

 

Pita Chips

Ingredients:

12 pita bread pockets
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried chervil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Cut each pita bread into 8 triangles. Place triangles on lined cookie sheet.

In a small bowl, combine the oil, pepper, salt, basil, and chervil. Brush each triangle with oil mixture.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 7 minutes, or until lightly browned and crispy. Watch carefully, as they tend to burn easily.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Dawn. You can find it here.

Notes: These were fantastic. They were delicious topped with the baked feta and they were awesome all by themselves. The kids particularly loved these. They kept asking for more "slices of little pizza."

Grecian Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 lb. lean, finely ground beef or lamb
1 medium onion
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper
1 egg, beaten
olive oil, for brushing

Directions:

Put the ground beef or lamb in a bowl. Grate in the onion, then add the garlic, bread crumbs, mint, and parsley. Season well with salt and pepper. Mix the ingredients well, then add the beaten egg and mix to bind the mixture together.

With damp hands, form the mixture into 16 small balls and thread onto 4 flat metal skewers. Lightly oil a broiler pan and brush the meatballs with oil.

Preheat the broiler and cook the meatballs under medium heat for 10 minutes, turning frequently, and brushing with more oil if necessary, until browned.

Source: From the cookbook "Perfect Greek," published by Parragon in 2008. ISBN: 978-1-4054-8858-7. You can find it here.

Notes: These are awesome. They are very similar to what you can get at the SLC Greek Festival.

Red Sauce for Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon oregano
1 (8 oz) can tomato puree
1 (4 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (28 oz) can whole, peeled tomatoes

Directions:

In a pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic. Cook, stirring well, until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add oregano and cook for about 30 seconds to a minute. Add tomato puree, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and whole, peeled tomatoes. Break up whole, peeled tomatoes with the back of a spoon or cut up with kitchen sheers.

Simmer on low while meatballs cook (at least 30 minutes).

Source: I came up with this recipe on my own.

Greek Lemon Potatoes

Ingredients:

2 lbs potatoes, unpeeled, washed, and cut into bite sized pieces
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lemon, juiced and zest grated (see notes)
4 Tbsp. water
6 cloves garlic, peeled
4 bay leaved
2 rosemary sprigs (see notes)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped (see notes)
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 pinch sugar
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp parsley, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Line a 9x13 baking dish with tin foil. Place the cut potatoes into the baking dish.

Drizzle the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, and water over the potatoes. Place the garlic, bay leaves, rosemary, thyme, oregano, sugar, salt, and pepper on top of the potatoes.

Stir well to coat.

Bake the potatoes for 1-1 1/2 hours or until they are cooked through, tender, and slightly crispy.

Stir every now and then during cooking to coat with the herby oil.

Sprinkle with chopped parsley prior to serving.

Source: Darn it, I found this online at least four years ago and now I can't remember what recipe site I found it on. Sorry!

Notes: I didn't have fresh lemons on hand, so I used a liberal amount of bottled lemon juice (to make up for not having lemon zest). The dish was still yummy, but honestly, lemon is the star flavor of this dish. Don't substitute the fresh lemon for bottled juice! If you really love the flavor of lemon, I would recommend using the juice of two lemons and the zest of one. Also, in addition to peeling the garlic, I halved it as well.

As for the herbs, substituting dried herbs works just fine in this dish. I didn't have fresh rosemary, so I used 1 teaspoon dried and crushed it between my fingers as I sprinkled it over the potatoes. I also didn't have fresh thyme, so I used 1/4 teaspoon of dried thyme.

 

Basic Greek Salad

Ingredients:

1 large bunch Romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
1 cucumber (you can either peel, thickly slice, and quarter this, or simply slice it into rounds with the peel on)
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion, optional
1/2-1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup pitted, sliced kalamata olives
Whole or sliced banana peppers, optional
Favorite bottled or homemade Greek salad dressing (see notes)

Directions:

Combine and toss all ingredients together in a large bowl.

Note: If you would like to make your own Greek salad dressing, here's a simple recipe found in the South Beach Diet cookbook:

Absolutely Fabulous Greek/House Dressing (Large Batch)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 quarts olive oil
1/3 cup garlic powder
1/3 cup dried oregano
1/3 cup dried basil
1/4 cup pepper
1/4 cup salt
1/4 cup onion powder
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 quarts red wine vinegar

Directions:

In a very large container, mix together the olive oil, garlic powder, oregano, basil, pepper, salt, onion powder, and Dijon mustard. Pour in the vinegar and mix vigorously until well-blended. Store tightly covered at room temperature.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Danielle M. You can find it here.

Notes: The recipe on Allrecipes says, "This is the 'secret' Greek dressing recipe from the pizzeria that I work at. The recipe makes almost a gallon, but can be scaled down easily. It can be used for picnics and travels very well, since it doesn't need to be refrigerated. This is the best dressing I have ever tasted, people offer to buy it constantly, but if we sold it, we wouldn't be able to make enough to use in the restaurant!" This was, indeed, good stuff.

Absolutely Fabulous Greek/House Dressing (Smaller Batch)

Ingredients:

3/4 cup, plus 2 tbsp, plus 1 tsp olive oil
2 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
2 1/2 tsp. dried basil
1 3/4 tsp. pepper
1 3/4 tsp. salt
1 3/4 tsp. onion powder
1 3/4 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 cup, plus 3 tbsp. red wine vinegar

Directions:

Mix all ingredients, except vinegar, together. Add red wine vinegar and mix vigorously until well-blended. Store tightly covered at room temperature.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Danielle M. You can find the original (big batch) recipe here (and above). 


Avgolemono Soup (Greek Lemon Soup)

Here is the recipe. I got it from a book Clint gave me, but I have modified it...

Ingredients:

3 pints chicken broth ( 3 16 oz cans)
2 eggs
2 Tbs lemon juice (or more depending on taste, I like things extra lemony)
about a cup of cooked rice or orzo pasta
one cooked chicken breast, shredded
parsley, chopped about 1/4 cup
salt, pepper to taste

Directions:

Bring broth to a boil, reduce to a simmer. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Add a small ladle of the soup to the egg mixture and whisk until well combined, then slowly add this mixture to the pot of the cooking broth. Whisk constantly until texture is smooth and egg is well integrated. Add chicken and rice cook on low for a few minutes, then add some fresh parsley. Yummmmmy!

Happy cooking!

Note: It is important to add a small ladle of soup to the egg mixture before adding the egg mixture directly to the soup. It tempers the egg mixture so that it doesn't cook immediately once it is added to the soup. If you add the egg mixture directly to the soup, it will end up more like Chinese egg noodle soup with string of egg throughout the soup rather than a silky, creamy texture as intended in this recipe. 

Greek Festival Lemon Rice Pilaf

Ingredients:

1/4 lb. butter
2 cups uncooked rice
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
5 cups hot chicken broth
salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

Heat butter in a heavy skillet. When it is hot, add the rice and, stirring constantly, sauce over medium heat until transparent, but not brown.

Add the lemon juice, chicken broth, and salt.

Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and let pilaf stand uncovered for 5 minutes before serving.

Source: I found this on food.com. You can find it here.

Notes: This isn't a fluffy rice pilaf, it is more of a sticky rice. It is so good. It is spot on with the Greek rice that you can get in a Greek restaurant. The recipe provides this note: "Every September, Salt Lake has an amazing Greek Festival. Back in 2001 I got a pamphlet of Greek recipes from the festival. This rice pilaf is very similar to the rice pilaf served at my favorite Greek restaurant. Opa!" This really does taste like the rice from the Greek festival. Good stuff!

The only change I made was to use half of the butter that the recipe called for. It was still fantastic.

Herbed Greek Roasted Potatoes with Feta Cheese

Ingredients:

5 pounds potatoes, cut into wedges
6 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup olive oil
1 cup water
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Sea salt, to taste
Ground black pepper, to taste
1 1/2 tablespoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon chopped fresh mint
1 (8 ounce) package crumbed feta cheese

Directions:

Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F. Lightly oil a large baking dish.

Stir the potatoes, garlic, olive oil, water, lemon juice, salt, and pepper together in a bowl until the potatoes are evenly coated; pour into the prepared baking dish.

Roast in the preheated oven until the potatoes begin to brown, about 40 minutes. Season the potatoes with the oregano and mint. If the dish appears dry, pour another 1/2 cup water into the dish. Return to the oven and bake about 40 minutes more. Top with the crumbled feta cheese to serve.

 

Greek Lentil Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 cup French (du Puy) lentils
1/2 cup quinoa
1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
2 small/medium zucchini or 1 large, cubed
1/2 cup red onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup kalamata olives, halved and pitted
4 tbsp. chopped fresh oregano
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
6 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

Directions:

Rinse and drain the lentils. Place in a saucepan and cover by 2 inches with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer 20-25 minutes, until tender. Strain and set aside.

While the lentils are cooking, make the quinoa. Place quinoa in a small sauce pot with 1 cup water. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer until all water is absorbed, about 12 minutes.

Remove from heat, keep the lid on and let sit another 2-3 minutes. Fluff with a fork and set aside.

Once the lentils and quinoa have cooled, place in a bowl with the tomatoes, zucchini, red onion, and olives.

Whisk together the oregano, salt, ground pepper, lemon juice, and olive oil. Toss with salad and serve.

Source: Delish Knowledge, recipe by Alex Caspero. You can find it here.

 

Greek Tzatziki

Ingredients:

1 (32 ounce) container plain low-fat yogurt (Greek yogurt can also be used for a thicker tzatziki)
1/2 English cucumber with peel, grated
1 clove garlic, pressed
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper

Directions:

Stir together yogurt, grated cucumber, garlic, lemon juice, and olive oil in a bowl. Add lemon zest, dill, salt, and pepper; whisk until smooth. pour into a serving dish, cover tightly, and refrigerate 8 hours before serving.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Leelee Cooks. You can find it here.

Notes: This is one of many tzatziki recipes on our blog, but it is a great one. It's always fun to try new combinations. We served this with our smoked lamb and it was fantastic. I need to hunt down the smoked lamb recipe from my brother and add it to this post.

Milk Pie aka Galatoboureko

Ingredients:

4 cups whole milk
1/2 cup fine semolina
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup unsalted butter
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough, thawed
2/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
3 cups water
2 cups sugar
1/2 large lemon

Directions:

In a 4 to 6 quart heavy pot, bring the milk to a boil, and reduce heat to low. Sprinkle in the semolina, whisking constantly. Add the sugar, and simmer for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat, whisk in 2/3 cup of the butter, and add eggs, one at a time, stirring well after each addition. Blend in the vanilla. The mixture will be thick, but pourable, like a soft polenta.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Line bottom with 8 sheets of phyllo, layering them one at a time, and brushing each sheet with butter. The sheets will be larger than the baking pan. Be certain that the bottom is covered by pressing the dough into the corners, and allow the excess to run up the sides of the pan. Phyllo sheets not in use should always be covered with a damp towl.

Pour the milk filling over the sheets. Cover with remaining 12 sheets of phyllo, repeating the layering process, and brushing each sheet with butter.

With a very sharp knife, trim the dough around the edges of the pan, and score the top diagonally in two directions to make diamond-shaped slits on the surface. Sprinkle the top with a little water, and bake 45 minutes to 1 hour. Check after 45 minutes. Pie is done when top is light brown and the filling is set.

As soon as the pie is in the ove, begin to make the syrup. Combine water and sugar in a 4 quart saucepan. Squeeze the halved lemon in the sugared water, and drop the juiced half in the liquid. Simmer on low heat for about 45 minutes. Discard the lemon. Very carefully, because syrup can boile vigorously, pour the hot syrup over the pie as soon as it is removed from the oven.

Let the pie cool completely, and then serve by cutting along the diagonal scores made prior to baking.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Kenmore featured chef, Cat Cora. You can find it here.

Notes: This is one of my favorite Greek desserts. It is so delicious. It is also wonderful with almond flavoring added in (in place of the vanilla).

Greek Honey Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon orange zest
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1 cup chopped walnuts (we used almonds because my son isn't allergic to those)
1 cup white sugar
1 cup honey
3/4 cup water
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9-inch square pan. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and orange rind. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and 3/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk, mixing just until incorporated. Stir in the walnuts (or almonds).

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool for 15 minutes, then cut into diamond shapes. Pour honey syrup over the cake.

For the Honey Syrup: In a saucepan, combine honey, 1 cup sugar, and water. Bring to a simmer and cook 5 minutes. Stir in lemon juice, bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes.

Source: Food.com by CaliforniaJan. You can find it here.

Notes: This was really good. Plus, it was beautiful with the diamond shapes on top.

A New Take on Tacos

This was a fun way to change up taco night. These were quite tasty and really hit the spot.

 

 

Greek Tacos

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean)
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
2 teaspoons Greek seasoning
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/ teaspoon pepper
2 cups fresh baby spinach
1 can (2-1/4 ounces) sliced ripe olives, drained
Lemon juice, to taste
1 package (4-1/2 ounces) taco shells
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup thinly sliced onion, soaked in lemon juice

Directions:

In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomatoes, Greek seasoning, garlic, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer for 8-10 minutes or until thickened. Add spinach and olives; cook and stir for 2-3 minutes or until spinach is wilted.

Meanwhile, place taco shells on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 300 degrees F. for 3-5 minutes or until heated through. Spoon about 1/4 cup beef mixture into each shell. Top with feta cheese and onion.

Yield: 12 servings.

Source: Taste of Home. You can find it here.

Notes: The only thing I didn't love about these is that while the leftover tacos were great, the wilted spinach wasn't the best part when they were reheated. I might try these in the future with fresh spinach or without spinach at all if we can't eat it all in one night. Even so, these were delicious. I'm just being nitpicky about the spinach.

Also, I couldn't find Greek seasoning at my grocery store, so I found a recipe online and made my own. I seasoned my tacos with the Greek seasoning to taste and I used more than just 2 teaspoons.

Greek Seasoning

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried marjoram
1/2 tsp. dried minced onion (or you can use onion powder, like I did)
1/4 tsp. dried minced garlic
1 tsp. dried mint

Directions:

Mix all spices together. Store in an airtight container until ready to use.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Margaret Havenar. You can find it here.

Notes: I just love that you can find a recipe for everything online! When I couldn't find Greek seasoning, I thought, "What am I going to do?" Then I thought, "Well, of course! The internet!"

This Will Round Things Out

Pasta salad is a side dish that always hits the spot for me. Besides that, it's always awesome for lunch too.

 

Greek Orzo Salad

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups uncooked orzo pasta
2 (6 ounce) cans marinated artichoke hearts
1 tomato, seeded and chopped
1 cucumber, seeded and chopped
1 red onion, chopped
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 (2 ounce) can black olives, drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper

Directions:

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8-10 minutes or until al dente; drain. Drain artichoke hearts, reserving liquid.

In large bowl, combine pasta, artichoke hearts, tomato, cucumber, onion, feta, olives, parsley, lemon juice, oregano, and lemon pepper. Toss and chill for 1 hour in refrigerator.

Just before serving, drizzle reserved artichoke marinade over salad.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Patrice. You can find it here.

Notes: This was a little dry, so we created a vinaigrette by adding olive oil, lemon juice to taste, and lemon pepper, to taste. Otherwise, it was a great mix of flavors.

I've Always Wondered How They Do This

I love a good gyro. I craved gyros a lot during this last pregnancy. As I have mentioned before, I have a number of great Greek restaurants nearby...but I've always wondered how gyros were made. Now I know! This recipe is spot on. I think there is a bit of a learning curve when it comes to packing the meat tightly, slicing it just right, and frying it so that it is crisp, but not too crisp, but I think practice will make perfect and I look forward to making these again and again until I am a pro. However, this recipe is also very forgiving, and even though some of my slices weren't perfect and I fried a few of them too crispy, it was still absolutely delicious.

I love how the author of this recipe stated that she slices the leftover meat in individual portions and freezes it for any time she craves a gyro. What a great idea!

Favorite Meat Loaf Gyros

Ingredients:

1 egg, lightly beaten
6 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons dried oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 pound ground lamb
1 pound ground beef

Tzatziki Sauce:

1 cup (8 ounces) plain yogurt
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Gyros:

8 whole pita breads
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
16 slices tomato
8 slices red or sweet onion, halved

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine the egg, garlic, oregano, kosher salt, and pepper. Crumble lamb and beef over mixture; mix well.

Pat into an ungreased 9-in. x 5-in. loaf pan. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 60-70 minutes or until no pink remains and a thermometer reads 160 degrees F. Cool completely on a wire rack. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours.

For sauce, in a small bowl, combine the yogurt, cucumber, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until serving.

Brush pita breads with 1 tablespoon oil; heat on a lightly greased griddle for 1 minute on each side. Keep warm. Cut meat loaf into very thin slices. In a large skillet, fry meatloaf in remaining oil in batches until crisp.

On each pita bread, layer the tomato, onion, and meatloaf slices; top with some tzatziki sauce. Carefully fold pitas in half. Serve with remaining sauce.

Makes 8 servings.

Source: Taste of Home October/November 2006. You can find it here.

Notes: I used bottled minced garlic instead of fresh garlic (the bottle will tell you the equivalent of how much minced garlic you need to equal one garlic clove). I know it sounds like a lot of garlic and oregano, but honestly, the proportions are perfect to give you the flavor of a gyro that you would buy in a restaurant.

The meatloaf renders a lot of grease. I would suggest draining it before placing it in the refrigerator to chill for 1-2 hours.

The tricky part for me, as I mentioned above, was packing the meat into the loaf pan. I had a few air pockets, so when I was trying to slice my meatloaf thinly, it didn't work out as well as I had hoped. Instead of equal sized slices, some of my slices were different shapes. Also, you can't slice the meat too thinly because then the slices are prone to crumbling even if you packed the meat well. This is where the practice makes perfect part comes into play. I just need to try it a few more times before I get it right. At any rate, even if your slices aren't exactly the same and you end up with air pockets, it will still taste great (though it might not be as pretty as you expected).

 

Above: I took pictures with the pretty slices of meatloaf. Not all of the slices looked this good! Ha ha!

Now I Can Make it at Home!

 

I love Greek food. Luckily for me, there are a ton of Greek fast food places nearby...but sometimes you just want to know how to make it for yourself at home. I have a fantastic Greek cookbook that my mom bought me years ago. It is called Perfect Greek (ISBN 978-1-4054-8858-7). You can find it here. It is a really wonderful, authentic cookbook. Everything I have made out of this book has been spot on. I love the meatball recipe from this book (which I have already posted here).

 

 

Chicken Kabobs with Yogurt Sauce (Chicken Souvlaki)

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups authentic Greek yogurt
2 garlic cloves, crushed
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tbsp chopped fresh herbs such as oregano, dill, tarron, or parsley
Salt and pepper
4 large skinned, boned chicken breasts
8 firm stems of fresh rosemary, optional (I used bamboo skewers)
Shredded romaine lettuce, to serve
Rice, to serve
Lemon wedges, to garnish

Directions:

To make the sauce, put the yogurt, garlic, lemon juice, herbs, salt, and pepper in a large bowl and mix well together.

Cut the chicken breasts into chunks measuring about 1 1/2 inches square. Add to the yogurt mixture and toss well together until the chicken pieces are coated. Cover and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for about 1 hour. If you are using wooden skewers, soak them in cold water for 30 minutes before use.

Preheat the broiler. Thread the pieces of chicken onto 8 flat, greased, metal kabob skewers, wooden skewers, or rosemary stems and place on a greased broiler pan.

Cook the kabobs under the broiler for about 15 minutes, turning and basting with the remaining marinade occasionally, until lightly browned and tender.

Pour the remaining marinade into a pan and heat gently but do not boil. Serve the kabobs with shredded lettuce on a bed of rice and garnish with lemon wedges. Accompany with yogurt sauce.

Source: Perfect Greek cookbook as noted above. You can find the link in my introduction to this post.

Notes: I didn't have fresh herbs on hand, so I used 1 tsp. dried oregano and 1 tsp. dried dill in the tzatziki yogurt sauce.

I skipped the Romaine lettuce. Instead, we served our souvlaki with this recipe for Greek Festival Lemon Rice that we have posted before. I also served it with some of this Greek tzatziki. Finally, we put the chicken on top of some pita bread and served it with additional cucumber and tomato slices.

My boys loved this. Everyone gobbled it up. This was fantastic. Next time, I will double it. Also, I soaked the bamboo skewers for quite awhile, but they still smoked a bit when I broiled them. I had to cover the ends of the skewers with foil to stop the smoking and charring. Maybe someday I will have to invest in some metal skewers.

I Love These!

I found this recipe and thought, "That will be nice to try. It sounds good." However, unbeknownst to me, I was about to try one of the best slow cooker recipes EVER! The tzatziki is one of the best I have ever had. The chicken is so flavorful. I tried first with my own pitas (using thawed Rhodes Dough rolls--see the notes for more info) and second, in wrap form with regular flour tortillas. It is fantastic both ways.

Hmmm...I may have to make this again sometime soon.

Slow-Cooker Chicken Gyro Bowls

Ingredients:

Chicken:

2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast (or use skinless thighs)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Juice of 1/2 medium lemon
1/3 cup water

Tzatziki:

16 oz plain Greek yogurt
1/2 English (hothouse) cucumber or 1 regular cucumber, peeled, seeded, and diced small
2 to 3 cloves garlic, grated or finely minced
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dried dill weed
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
Salt and pepper, to taste
Juice of 1/2 medium lemon
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Tortillas and Toppings:

8 to 12 Old El Paso Stand 'N Stuff soft flour tortillas, heated as directed on package (see notes)
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced
1 cup crumbled feta cheese (4 oz)

Directions:

Spray 4-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Add all Chicken ingredients to slow cooker; stir. Cover; cook on low heat setting 6 to 8 hours or on high heat setting 4 to 6 hours.

Meanwhile, make Tzatziki. In medium bowl, stir together all Tzatziki ingredients except oil. Drizzle 1 tablesspon oil over top. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving to allow flavors to meld.

Remove cooked chicken from slow cooker, and shred with 2 forks. Divide chicken among tortillas. Top each with Tzatziki, red onion, grape tomatoes, and feta cheese.

Recipe notes: Full fat Greek yogurt works best for this, but 2% works as well. You want the yogurt to be thick, so if your Greek yogurt seems thin, strain it through a fine mesh strainer.

Source: Betty Crocker website. You can find it here.

Notes: As I said before sharing the recipe, I served this originally with homemade pitas made from thawed Rhodes Dough. Simply thaw desired amount of dough and let it rise. Break off tennis ball sized pieces of dough and stretch to form a circle. Place in heated (medium to medium-high heat) pan and lightly brown both sides (only about 30-45 seconds per side). Top with chicken and toppings and fold over. My husband had them with the red onions, I didn't (that's why the pictures don't have red onions on them).

Once the pitas were gone, I still had leftover chicken, toppings, and tzatziki so I started making wraps with regular flour tortillas (not the bowls). They tasted great too.

This was seriously so good. My mouth was watering as I typed this up. I had the leftovers for lunch for a few days after I made this and it was to die for.

Going Back for Seconds

 

If you can only have one serving of these potatoes, you are superhuman.

Herbed Greek Roasted Potatoes with Feta Cheese

Ingredients:

5 pounds potatoes, cut into wedges
6 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup olive oil
1 cup water
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Sea salt, to taste
Ground black pepper, to taste
1 1/2 tablespoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon chopped fresh mint
1 (8 ounce) package crumbed feta cheese

Directions:

Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F. Lightly oil a large baking dish.

Stir the potatoes, garlic, olive oil, water, lemon juice, salt, and pepper together in a bowl until the potatoes are evenly coated; pour into the prepared baking dish.

Roast in the preheated oven until the potatoes begin to brown, about 40 minutes. Season the potatoes with the oregano and mint. If the dish appears dry, pour another 1/2 cup water into the dish. Return to the oven and bake about 40 minutes more. Top with the crumbled feta cheese to serve.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Cat Lady Cyndi. You can find it here. By the way, don't you get a kick out of some of the user names on Allrecipes? I sure do!

Notes: Holy cow, these were so delicious. Good, good stuff.

Come back!

So, when I moved into my house about a year and a half ago, I was overjoyed to find a Mad Greek restaurant nearby. I love Greek food! Then, to my disappointment, it closed down. Nooooooo! Come back! I mean, even my boys would eat it! My picky, picky boys! They loved the chicken souvlaki, the lemon rice, and the fries (seriously, don't Greek restaurants have the best fries?).

There is still an Astro Burger nearby...but I miss my Mad Greek.

When my Greek cravings were too strong recently, I whipped up this dinner one night.

Chicken Gyros

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons oil
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces (in hindsight, I think this would have worked better cut into strips, but it would work either way)
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest, plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice, divided
2 teaspoons dried oregano

Tzatziki:


1/2 cucumber, finely chopped
1 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley or mint
Salt and pepper, to taste

Pitas:

12 frozen Rhodes dough rolls, thawed and risen

Directions:

Heat oil over medium-high heat in a large nonstick skillet. Add chicken, lemon zest, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook until golden brown and cooked through.

In a medium bowl, make tzatziki. Combine chopped cucumber, yogurt, parsley or mint, and 1 tablespoon lemon juice; season with salt and pepper to taste.

For the pitas, divide the dough into 4-6 portions. Heat a small nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Stretch out each portion of dough (like you would for a small pizza crust). Place the dough onto the skillet (do not use oil or nonstick cooking spray). Cook until lightly browned, and then turn over onto the other side; about 1 to 2 minutes per side.

Serve the chicken inside each pita. Top with tzatziki and sliced tomatoes, and thinly sliced red onions, if desired.

Source: I used this recipe (posted previously on our blog) as inspiration.

Greek Festival Lemon Rice Pilaf

Ingredients:

1/4 lb. butter
2 cups uncooked rice
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
5 cups hot chicken broth
salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

Heat butter in a heavy skillet. When it is hot, add the rice and, stirring constantly, sauce over medium heat until transparent, but not brown.

Add the lemon juice, chicken broth, and salt.

Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and let pilaf stand uncovered for 5 minutes before serving.

Source: I found this on food.com. You can find it here.

Notes: This isn't a fluffy rice pilaf, it is more of a sticky rice. It is so good. It is spot on with the Greek rice that you can get in a Greek restaurant. The recipe provides this note: "Every September, Salt Lake has an amazing Greek Festival. Back in 2001 I got a pamphlet of Greek recipes from the festival. This rice pilaf is very similar to the rice pilaf served at my favorite Greek restaurant. Opa!" This really does taste like the rice from the Greek festival. Good stuff!

The only change I made was to use half of the butter that the recipe called for. It was still fantastic.

Greek Food: Food of the Gods

I've always been fascinated by Greek mythology. It's just so interesting to see how certain myths were created to make sense of the world and its mysteries.

In Greek mythology, the food of the gods is called "ambrosia." I love to say the word. But honestly, I don't love the salad that has become associated with the word. Your basic ambrosia recipe has whipped cream and all sorts of fruits folded into it with marshmallows. But if that's your type of thing, then you can check out this five star rated recipe by Alton Brown found on the Food Network website here.

So, while the recipe I am sharing today doesn't fit today's definition of the word "ambrosia," it is still considered ambrosia by me!

I was doing a search on ancient foods awhile ago and one of the articles I was reading explained why certain cultures developed certain types of foods. It makes complete sense once you think about it. German food uses butter and beer because of their vast countrysides, land-locked status, and forests. They raised cows (hence the butter) and grew grains and barley (which was used for beer). They don't have any seafood dishes because they were land-locked, so most of their dishes are chicken, beef, or pork.

Italian food is a product of its vegetation and climate too. Grapes grow there in abundance, so they use a lot more wine in their cooking. Olives grow perfectly in the sunshine of the Mediterranean, so olive oil is used in place of butter. Since the majority of Italy's border is coastline, they have a lot of wonderful seafood in their cuisine.

Of course, in the early days, there wasn't a huge amount of travel or cultural mixing between European countries so what happened in one area tended to stay in one area. I'm quite glad because it allowed each country to develop its own feel and identity. And now we can all mix and socialize one with another and share all of the wonderful cultural differences we have.

As for Greek food, like Italian food, it also utilizes olives. But you'll also find yogurt and feta (since they raised more goats than cows), almonds, lemon, mint, cucumbers, and oregano. Pair those flavors together and you know you have a Greek dinner in the making.

You just can't go wrong with Greek food. It's all good! Lamb, chicken souvlaki, gyros, kefthedes (Greek meatballs), etc. And then, of course, there are the desserts. Yum!

Some Greek food is more time consuming than others. But I found this very manageable and authentic recipe on Martha Stewart's website. The thing I love about this recipe is that it is a recipe for the entire meal. So, you don't have to worry about what side dishes to make with it. I really think you'll like it!

Greek-Style Chicken with Pickled Onions, Tomatoes, and Tzatziki

Ingredients:

1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Coarse salt and ground pepper
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1 1/2 pounds total), cut into 1-inch pieces
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest, plus 4 teaspoons lemon juice (from 2 lemons)
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 English cucumber, halved crosswise and thinly sliced
2/3 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved (2 cups)
Cooked long-grain white rice, for serving

Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine onion and vinegar; season with salt and pepper. In another medium bowl, combine chicken, lemon zest, and oregano; season with salt and pepper.

In a third medium bowl, make tzatziki: Combine cucumber, yogurt, parsley, and lemon juice; season with salt and pepper.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Add chicken and cook until golden brown and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes to pickled onions and serve with chicken, tzatziki, and rice.

Recipe notes: A short soak in a vinegar bath mellows red onions and turns them sweet and spicy. They make a great complement to juicy bites of chicken and the cool salad called tzatziki.

Source: Martha Stewart website. You can find it here.

Notes: I served this with rice and pita bread wedges. You could also pair it with a garden salad with Greek toppings (such as banana peppers, kalamata olives, feta cheese, sliced cucumber, and tomatoes topped with a Greek vinaigrette). If you prefer, you could use pita bread pockets and stuff the ingredients into it for a pita pocket sandwich.

I found that when you got little bites of each ingredient on the fork at the same time, that's when this recipe was really fantastic. All of these ingredients work together so well. Yum!

Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts

Usually when I make slow cooker chicken, it ends up shredded. But I found a new recipe and I am sharing an old recipe that don't get shredded up. You have to remove it carefully from the slow cooker to keep the chicken from breaking apart, but it makes for some yummy, tender, moist chicken. Not to mention that it also makes for a very easy main dish! Throw together some easy sides and voila! Dinner is ready in a jiffy.



Chicken Athena

Ingredients:

6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 medium onions, chopped (see notes below)
1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil), chopped
1/3 cup pitted Greek olives, chopped (Kalamata olives)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Place chicken in slow cooker. Top with the remaining ingredients.

Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 170 degrees.

Yield: 6 servings.

Nutrition information: 1 chicken breast equals 237 Calories, 6 g fat, 94 mg cholesterol, 467 mg sodium, 8 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 36 g protein.

Source: Taste of Home recipe submitted by Radelle Knappenberger of Oviedo, Florida.

Notes: I used red onions and I thickly sliced them rather than chopping them. I placed the onions in the slow cooker first, put the chicken on top of the onions, and then placed the remaining ingredients on top of the chicken. I also served the chicken with a little feta cheese sprinkled on top. They were so flavorful and so easy! I served it with a side of couscous and the Basic Greek Salad that I already posted on our blog. You can find the recipe here. The only change to that salad recipe is that I forgot the banana peppers.



Slow Cooker Chicken Cordon Bleu

Ingredients:

6 chicken boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded to flatten slightly
6 thin slices ham
6 thin slices Swiss cheese
1/4-1/2 cup flour, for coating
1/2 pound sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine (or use more chicken broth)
1/2 teaspoon rosemary, crushed
1/ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon cool water
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Place a slice of ham and a slice of cheese on each flattened chicken breast and roll up. Secure with toothpicks and roll each in flour to coat. Place mushrooms in the slow cooker, then the chicken breasts. Whisk together the broth, wine (if using), and rosemary; pour over chicken. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours.

Just before serving, remove the chicken to a warm plate and add cornstarch mixture to the juices in the slow cooker; turn slow cooker on high and stir until thickened. Salt and pepper, then taste and adjust seasonings. Pour sauce over chicken rolls and serve.

Serves 6.

Source: I got this recipe from my Mom, but I'm not sure where she got it from!

Notes: I served this with a bagged salad kit, a frozen vegetable kit, and a box of Betty Crocker scalloped potatoes. Super easy.

It's Greek to Me!

 

I love Greek food (surprised?). One of the fun things about Utah is the Greek Festival. It happens the first weekend of September every year. I haven't been able to go for about two years now (it's not really a baby friendly venue). The Greek Festival features music, dancing, fun things you can buy, and most of all...food.

I would be hard pressed to find a kind of Greek food that I don't like. Souvlaki, dolmathes, avgolemono soup, gyros, etc. Then, of course, there are the desserts: baklava and galaktoboureko stand out in my mind.

One of the main things that keeps me coming back to the Greek festival (at least food-wise) is the keftedes (also spelled keftethes) a.k.a. meatballs. They are to die for. They are so savory and flavorful and I can't get over the yummy combination of ground beef, garlic, and mint!

I have tried for years to find a recipe that even comes close to the meatballs they serve at the Greek Festival. And finally...I think this recipe comes pretty darn close! I used a recipe I found in a cookbook, but I altered it a little. I am including both versions (the recipe as is and my alterations). I still need to work on the red sauce (it's good, but it's not quite the same as the festival's recipe). You don't need to serve the meatballs with the sauce (they are great on their own), but I wanted it to come as close as possible to the Greek Festival version. I think you'll like it!

The potato side dish is one that my family discovered a couple of years ago when we had our own Greek Theme Night. Don't skimp on the lemon! It is the standout flavor of this dish.

Oh, and I hope I didn't tempt anyone too much, but the picture above features the meatballs, the lemon potatoes, and store-bought spanakopita (which I don't have a recipe for...sorry!). You can find spanakopita in the frozen section (if not at your grocery store, you can find it for sure at Costco or Sam's Club).

Also, though not pictured, I'm throwing in two Greek salad recipes. The first one is a basic Greek salad recipe of my own concoction with a South Beach salad dressing recipe. The second one is one that my dear friend, Krissy, served to me when I visited her on a trip to Florida many, many years ago!

Oh, and one final thing...I'm posting a recipe for Avgolemono Soup (Greek Lemon Soup) that my sister made long before we started our family food blog. That's right...I took it right off of her blog via cut and paste method (so that recipe is in her own words)! Bwa ha ha! Laurie, I hope that's okay with you!

At any rate...Opa!


Grecian Meatballs (recipe as originally printed)

Ingredients:

1 lb. lean, finely ground beef or lamb
1 medium onion
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper
1 egg, beaten
olive oil, for brushing

Directions:

Put the ground beef or lamb in a bowl. Grate in the onion, then add the garlic, bread crumbs, mint, and parsley. Season well with salt and pepper. Mix the ingredients well, then add the beaten egg and mix to bind the mixture together.

With damp hands, form the mixture into 16 small balls and thread onto 4 flat metal skewers. Lightly oil a broiler pan and brush the meatballs with oil.

Preheat the broiler and cook the meatballs under medium heat for 10 minutes, turning frequently, and brushing with more oil if necessary, until browned.

Source: From the cookbook "Perfect Greek," published by Parragon in 2008. ISBN: 978-1-4054-8858-7

Grecian Meatballs (my version)

Ingredients:

4 lbs. ground beef
1 large onion, cut into quarters
4 large garlic cloves, peeled
2 cups Italian bread crumbs
4-6 Tbsp. chopped fresh mint
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 eggs

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Put the ground beef in a bowl. Place the onion, garlic cloves and 2 of the eggs into a blender. Blend until well combined. Pour the mixture into the bowl with the beef. Add the bread crumbs, mint, parsley, salt, and pepper. Beat the remaining eggs and add them to the bowl. Mix the ingredients together well (this works best using a kneading motion with your hands).

Form the mixture into balls (I ended up with 40 medium-sized meatballs). Place onto two jelly roll pans that have been covered with foil.

Cook the meatballs for 45-60 minutes (or until nicely browned and no longer pink in the middle). You can turn the meatballs once during cooking, if desired, but it is not necessary.

Serve with red sauce, if desired.

Notes: The Greek Festival meatballs are fairly bursting with flavor, so I made a few adjustments on the quantities. I also quadrupled the recipe (I have my reasons!). I didn't have any plain bread crumbs and rather than making my own, I simply used packaged Italian bread crumbs. I think this was serendipitous because it just boosted the flavor even more. It didn't make the meatballs taste Italian at all. It just deepened the flavor. Also, I started to grate the onion and I thought it was a pain, so I simply put it into the blender with the garlic. It infused the meatballs with flavor and was a whole lot easier for me! Oh, and meatballs are really freezer friendly. If you want to freeze some or all of the meatballs, place them on a foil-lined cookie sheet and put them in the freezer for a few hours (just until they are set and won't stick together if you place them in a bag). After the meatballs have frozen for a few hours, put them in a zip top freezer bag and label them (contents and date). Then, when you want to cook them, take out as many as you like, place them on a foil-lined cookie sheet and bake from frozen according to the recipe--only add 10-20 minutes to the cooking time. Watch carefully, so they don't get overdone. The red sauce is freeze-able too. Just freeze it separately in a plastic container.

Red Sauce for Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon oregano
1 (8 oz) can tomato puree
1 (4 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (28 oz) can whole, peeled tomatoes

Directions:

In a pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic. Cook, stirring well, until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add oregano and cook for about 30 seconds to a minute. Add tomato puree, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and whole, peeled tomatoes. Break up whole, peeled tomatoes with the back of a spoon or cut up with kitchen sheers.

Simmer on low while meatballs cook (at least 30 minutes).

Source: My own mind.

Greek Lemon Potatoes

Ingredients:

2 lbs potatoes, unpeeled, washed, and cut into bite sized pieces
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lemon, juiced and zest grated (see notes)
4 Tbsp. water
6 cloves garlic, peeled
4 bay leaved
2 rosemary sprigs (see notes)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped (see notes)
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 pinch sugar
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp parsley, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Line a 9x13 baking dish with tin foil. Place the cut potatoes into the baking dish.

Drizzle the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, and water over the potatoes. Place the garlic, bay leaves, rosemary, thyme, oregano, sugar, salt, and pepper on top of the potatoes.

Stir well to coat.

Bake the potatoes for 1-1 1/2 hours or until they are cooked through, tender, and slightly crispy.

Stir every now and then during cooking to coat with the herby oil.

Sprinkle with chopped parsley prior to serving.

Source: Darn it, I found this online at least four years ago and now I can't remember what recipe site I found it on. Sorry!

Notes: I didn't have fresh lemons on hand, so I used a liberal amount of bottled lemon juice (to make up for not having lemon zest). The dish was still yummy, but honestly, lemon is the star flavor of this dish. Don't substitute the fresh lemon for bottled juice! If you really love the flavor of lemon, I would recommend using the juice of two lemons and the zest of one. Also, in addition to peeling the garlic, I halved it as well.

As for the herbs, substituting dried herbs works just fine in this dish. I didn't have fresh rosemary, so I used 1 teaspoon dried and crushed it between my fingers as I sprinkled it over the potatoes. I also didn't have fresh thyme, so I used 1/4 teaspoon of dried thyme.



Basic Greek Salad

Ingredients:

1 large bunch Romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
1 cucumber (you can either peel, thickly slice, and quarter this, or simply slice it into rounds with the peel on)
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion, optional
1/2-1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup pitted, sliced kalamata olives
Whole or sliced banana peppers, optional
Favorite bottled or homemade Greek salad dressing (see notes)

Directions:

Combine and toss all ingredients together in a large bowl.

Note: If you would like to make your own Greek salad dressing, here's a simple recipe found in the South Beach Diet cookbook:

South Beach Greek Salad Dressing:

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Whisk all ingredients together. Makes enough dressing for 1 serving.

Mediterranean Greek Salad

Yields: 8 servings

Ingredients:

3 cucumbers, seeded and sliced
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese
1 cup black olives, pitted and sliced
3 cups diced Roma tomatoes
1/3 cup diced oil packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained, oil reserved
1/2 red onion, sliced

Directions:

In a large salad bowl, toss together the cucumbers, feta cheese, olives, Roma tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, 2 tablespoons reserved sun-dried tomato oil, and red onion. Chill until serving.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Heather Shevlin

Avgolemono Soup

Before:
After: Yum!

Perhaps my favorite thing, second only to making art is making good food. I am constantly trying new recipes and creating some too. This is probably because my mom was always such a great cook, we rarely had the same meal twice (with the exception of some family favorites!) So I have decided to blog once a month about a recipe I have found or created that I think you should all try. This month the recipe is Avegolemono Soup also known as Greek Lemon Soup (Well that is what I call it :) ) I also wanted to use my hand made pottery that I made last summer in my ceramics class. For some reason, its always more fun to eat out of homemade dishes :) So you kind of get a double dose of art and food in this one. Lucky dogs.

This soup is SOOOOO fast easy (seriously 10 minutes) not to mention RIDICULOUSLY Cheap. You probably have all of the ingredients on hand . Plus I really think it would please even the pickiest of eaters. Yum yum yum. If you feel like spending more time in the kitchen serve them with some homemade pitas. I made these pitas a few weeks ago (from Cooking Light mag, one of my very favorite things, you can find the recipe online at myrecipes.com) and they were so delicious. This time I served the soup with a tossed salad and pomegranate tea.

Avgolemono Soup (Greek Lemon Soup)

Here is the recipe. I got it from a book Clint gave me, but I have modified it...

Ingredients:

3 pints chicken broth ( 3 16 oz cans)
2 eggs
2 Tbs lemon juice (or more depending on taste, I like things extra lemony)
about a cup of cooked rice or orzo pasta
one cooked chicken breast, shredded
parsley, chopped about 1/4 cup
salt, pepper to taste

Directions:

Bring broth to a boil, reduce to a simmer. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Add a small ladle of the soup to the egg mixture and whisk until well combined, then slowly add this mixture to the pot of the cooking broth. Whisk constantly until texture is smooth and egg is well integrated. Add chicken and rice cook on low for a few minutes, then add some fresh parsley. Yummmmmy!

Happy cooking!

Note: It is important to add a small ladle of soup to the egg mixture before adding the egg mixture directly to the soup. It tempers the egg mixture so that it doesn't cook immediately once it is added to the soup. If you add the egg mixture directly to the soup, it will end up more like Chinese egg noodle soup with string of egg throughout the soup rather than a silky, creamy texture as intended in this recipe.