Greek Chicken Gyros w/ Spicy Yogurt Dressing

GREEK CHICKEN GYROS W/ SPICY YOGURT DRESSING

Inspired by “The Med” salad and pita sandwich at Noodles & Company, I decided to make these Greek Chicken Gyros last night for dinner. Serve with the spicy “Med” yogurt dressing, adapted from a copycat ‘Noodles & Co.’ recipe I found online, which interestingly includes a dash (or a few of ’em) of hot sauce!

Ingredients:
4 whole wheat pitas (without pockets), about 9″ in diameter
1 lb chicken breast
1/2 cup balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing
1 tbsp Greek seasoning
Prepared tzatziki sauce or greek veggie dip
2 tablespoons black olives, sliced
1 tomato, sliced
1/4 cup red onion, sliced
1/2 green pepper, sliced
1/2 cucumber, sliced
1 cup fresh baby spinach leaves
1/2 cup feta cheese

For the dressing:
3 tbsp hot sauce
1/3 cup plain greek yogurt
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
dash of salt and pepper
1 tbsp feta cheese
2 tbsp lemon juice

Directions:
Combine balsamic vinaigrette and greek seasoning in a large ziplock storage bag. Add chicken and toss to coat. Refrigerate at least one hour, flipping bag halfway through.

To make the dressing, combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend on low until smooth. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let the flavors meld.

When chicken has marinated, cut into strips about 1/2″ in width. Heat a skillet or grill pan on medium high. Add chicken to pan and cook on medium heat for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until no longer pink in the center (time will depend on the thickness of the breast). Remove from pan. While still hot, add a bit more cooking spray or olive oil and cook peppers until soft- about 5 minutes.

Spoon about 1 tbsp tzatziki sauce on each pita, leaving about an inch around the border. Cover with black olives, tomato, red onion, green pepper, cucumber, and spinach. Add a few strips of chicken to each pita and sprinkle a bit of feta over top. Loosely wrap in tin foil and place in a warm oven at about 350 degrees for about 10 minutes, or until warm. Alternatively place each pita on a preheated George Foreman grill at 350 degrees for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and drizzle with spicy yogurt dressing.

Greek Chicken Gyros

Look at that handsome husband of mine!

Ben with Greek Chicken Gyros!

ClaireLeave a comment

BBQ Chicken Pizza

BBQ CHICKEN PIZZA

BBQ chicken pizza

Ingredients:

3 chicken breast cutlets

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

Cooking spray

Pizza dough (see recipe that follows)

2 tablespoons cornmeal

1/2- 2/3 cup prepared BBQ sauce of your choice

1/2 sliced red onion

1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

1/4 cup sliced black olives

1 cup fresh baby spinach, torn into smaller pieces

1 teaspoon parsley

8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Place pizza stone or heavy baking sheet in oven and preheat to 450 degrees. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. In a separate small bowl, combine brown sugar, paprika, garlic powder and cumin and stir well to combine. Set 2 teaspoons of mixture aside, and rub the rest of the mixture on both sides of the chicken.

Heat a skillet on medium-high heat and coat with cooking spray. Add chicken to pan and cook 3 minutes on each side or until no longer pink in the center. Let stand a few minutes, then slice thinly into strips.

Roll prepared dough (see below) into a 14×9 inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Pierce a few times with a fork to prevent it from bubbling in the oven. Lightly coat with cooking spray. Remove pan from oven and sprinkle lightly with cornmeal. Place dough on pan and bake at 450 degrees for 9 minutes. Remove from oven (dough will probably not yet be browned but should no longer be stretchy!) and spread with BBQ sauce and remaining spice mixture. Make sure to leave about a ½ inch border around the edges.

Top pizza with chicken, onions, blue cheese, spinach, olives, parsley, and mozzarella. Return to oven for 10 minutes, or until cheese is brown and bubbly.

Enjoy!

BBQ chicken pizza 2

HOMEMADE PIZZA DOUGH

(makes enough for 3 medium pizzas)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup warm water

1 envelope (or 2 ¼ teaspoons) instant dry yeast

1 ¼ cups water at room temperature

2 tabslepoons extra-virgin olive oil

4 cups white bread flour, plus additional flour for dusting work area

1 ½ teaspoons salt

Olive oil or nonstick cooking spray

Directions:

Measure warm water into a measuring cup and sprinkle yeast on top. Let stand until yeast is dissolved, about five minutes. Add the room temperature water and oil. Stir to combine.

In a stand mixture, mix flour and salt with paddle attachment and combine on low speed. Slowly add in the yeast mixture on low until a ball forms. Dough will be sticky. Stop mixing and attach dough hook. Knead dough for about five minutes, or until the dough is smooth and stretchy. Remove from the bowl and form into a ball with your hands. Place ball into a deep oiled bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Allow to rise in a warm place (sometimes I preheat the oven to 200, turn off the oven, and let the dough rise there!) until it has doubled in size. This should take 1-2 hours. Deflate the dough by punching it once or twice with your fist. Divide it into the number of pizzas that you want to make! It can be easily frozen for later use as well!

 

Claire1 Comment

Cajun Chili

Cajun Chili

This is a quick and easy recipe, adapted from Eatingwell.com, and is made almost entirely from ingredients that you probably already have on hand!

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium-large sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 large onion, diced
2 turkey sausage links, sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoons medium-hot chili powder
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
4 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups water
1 tsp Better than Bullion
2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
2 carrots, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper
4 teaspoons lime juice
1 teaspoon dried parsley
salt and pepper
paprika, to taste
sour cream, to taste

Directions:
Heat oil over medium-high in a large saucepan. Add onion and sweet potato and cook until onion is tender, about 4 minutes. Add slices of turkey sausage and cook until a bit charred on both sides. Stir in garlic, chili powder, Cajun seasoning, cumin, crushed red pepper, and salt, and mix into veggies and sausage for about 30 seconds. Add water and Better than Bullion and stir until dissolved. Add carrots and green pepper. Bring mixture to a boil, and then reduce to medium heat until sweet potato is tender, about 10 minutes.

Add beans, tomatoes, and lime juice. Return to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes more.

Remove from heat and serve over brown rice. Top with a dollop of sour cream, if desired. Sprinkle salt/pepper, parlsey, and paprika over top.

 

ClaireLeave a comment

Claire Tastes, Claire Fails. Claire Makes Progresso Soup Better.

I would choose to have leftovers for dinner every night if I could. Especially in the colder months, I make sure to have a constant stock of stew or chili in the freezer to heat up for a quick and hearty meal. My love of soups started in college, when I would often choose a Tabatchnick soup for lunch- the kind that comes in a sealed plastic bag that you boil in water for a few minutes and then simply pour into a bowl.

Well, I thought I’d do the same with some leftover frozen Black Bean & Pumpkin Chili (recipe to come… once I’ve perfected it)- pop it into a Ziplock storage bag and stick it in a pot of boiling water. Easy as pie, right?

Wrongo.

I let the soup boil for a few minutes, went back to check on it, and found a saucepan full of brownish-green water with chunks of watered down chili floating mockingly to the top. I lifted up the bag, and what was left of the chili plopped right out the holes that had appeared in the bottom of the bag and straight into the water.

Boy, was I disappointed! At that moment it seemed that the only thing I wanted to eat was that pumpkin chili. My husband offered to go to the store to get more soup… I just gave him my puppy dog look and responded, “But this was the soup I made myself!!” (As if no one in the world would ever come close)

Grudgingly, I opened up the pantry door and surveyed my options of mediocre Progresso soups. Macaroni & Bean, Macaroni & Bean, Hearty Tomato, and more Macaroni & Bean.

Suddenly I had a great idea. Why not take an ordinary Progresso soup can and improve it? A world of opportunities was opened as I thought about what I could do with that simple can. Instead of treating it as the end product, I would use it as a recipe starter (hey- Progresso invented the idea of that anyway, didn’t they?) and spice things up a bit.

progresso_soup

Take this ordinary can of Macaroni & Bean Progresso Soup. Add some leftover frozen veggies, a few frozen, cooked turkey meatballs, a can of diced tomatoes, chicken broth, and about a half teaspoon each of dried bay leaves, parsely, rosemary, and thyme (I didn’t have sage, otherwise I would call this “Scarborough Fair” soup). Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for about 15 minutes or until turkey meatballs are heated through. Remove from heat, add some garlic powder and fresh baby spinach. Serve when spinach is wilted.

progresso_soup_makeover

What started off as a disappointing event turned into a breakthrough in modern cooking! Okay, well probably not. But it was certainly an improvement of the situation. I ended up with a stew with a lot more green and a lot more flavor than I started with. Better yet- now I know what to do with those three remaining cans of Progresso that have been sitting in my pantry for these past few months!

ClaireLeave a comment