It’s all Greek to me

 Summer = time to use the grill. This was very yummy.  I got lots of rave reviews on this meal. 

Chicken:

• 4 chicken breasts
• Marinade:
• 2 cups full fat Greek yogurt
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 4 tablespoons white vinegar
• Zest of a lemon and juice of a lemon
• 6 cloves of garlic minced
• 2 tsps of dried oregano
• 2 tsps kosher salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsps paprika 

Instructions:

• Cut raw chicken into big cubes
• Marinate the chicken for several hours
• Put chicken onto soaked wood skewers
• Preheat grill
• Grill until nice and brown  maybe 7-8 mins on each side?

Hummus:

• 2 cans of drained chickpeas
• 3/4 cup tahini 
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• Juice of 2 lemons
• A little water to loosen it
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tsp cumin 

Instructions: put all in food processor and blend until smooth  

Tzatziki:

• 2-3 cups Greek full fat yogurt 
• About 1-1/2 cups of grated cucumber (I used food processor)  drain out water from cucumber  
• Juice of a lemon
• Chopped dill (a couple tablespoons)
• Chopped mint (a couple tablespoons)
• 4 tablespoons olive oil 
• 4 cloves garlic 
• Salt
• Pepper

Instructions: Blend it all up in food processor and add more or less to taste of everything  

Veggie mix:

• A container of very sweet cherry tomatoes
• Several small cucumbers 
• A big red onion
• Parsley 
• Dill
• Mint
• Olive oil 
• Salt and pepper
• Lemon juice
• Agave
• Vinegar

Instructions: use the medium slicing mode on food processor  Chop everything. marinate in olive oil and lemon juice. And a tablespoon of agave syrup and Maybe a tablespoon of vinegar  

Warm up pitas and naan bread on grill or stove top  assemble all those ingredients into a pita sandwich

Orzo pasta

• Boil 2 cups of dry orzo and then rinse with cold water
• Mix cooked orzo with:
• 1/2 jar chopped kalamata olives 
• 8 oz block of feta, chopped into cubes
• A cup or two of the veggie mixture you made
• Olive oil - I don’t know maybe a 1/2 cup
• Season with salt, pepper and oregano
• Add a splash of vinegar and a splash of agave if it needs it  
• Put in fridge and serve cold

Nothing is precise in any of this meal. Taste as you go for more lemon, garlic, salt, pepper or herbs  

Dessert was angel food cake with chopped pineapple, strawberries and bananas served with cool whip!

Bacon Cheddar Pinwheels with (Huh?) secret ingredients

Bacon Cheddar Pinwheel

I had the neighborhood Christmas potluck today so I decided to make an appetizer which turned out to be a big hit.  “What is IN these?” This was the common question followed by “these are SO GOOD!”

I can’t stake my claim as the inventor of these delicious morsels.  My friend Kathryn introduced me to these at her annual cookie exchange, where is these appetizers would fly off the counter.  Her friend Jennifer gave her the recipe.

Ingredients:

• 20 slices white sandwich bread, crust trimmed (about a loaf)
• 1 (14oz) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/4 cup prepared mustard (I like to use spicy)
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (I probably use 2)
• 1.5 pounds sliced bacon 
• 8 oz. (2 cups) shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions:

• Flatten the bread slices with a rolling pin or by hand. Combine the condensed milk, mustard and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl and mix well.  Cute the entire block of bacon into halves and separate slices. 
• Arrange 3 bacon halves side by side on a work surface. (I overlap them slightly)
• Place 1 flattened piece of bread on the bacon and spread with 1 tablespoon of the condensed milk mixture.
• Top with 1 tablespoon of cheese.
• Roll the bacon to enclose the bread and secure with wooden toothpicks (I don't use toothpicks, unless it looks really necessary).
• Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
• Cut each roll into three pinwheels, cutting the bacon slices. 
• Arrange pinwheels on a baking sheet (I often cover the tray first with aluminum foil and spray with Pam - makes for an easier cleanup) and bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown and crisp. They should get nice and brownish but don’t burn the bottoms. 

This is what it looked like before I baked:

This is after baking:

The potluck was outdoors so I kept them warm on this new warming plate I got at Home Depot. I figure it will be handy for entertaining during the holiday season  

Enjoy! These will be the hit of the party!

 

Thanksgiving Leftovers re-emerge into Quiches

Quiche #1:  Broccoli Cheese Casserole and Macaroni and Cheese Quiche

Quiche #2:  Creamed Spinach, Honey Baked Ham, Parsley and Gouda Quiche

First, here’s the story:

The day after Thanksgiving I look into my fridge and see a motherload of leftovers. What to do? Eat them again? An option. Or…turn them into a new recipe. I choose new recipe.  What comes next will blow your mind. I invented thanksgiving leftover quiches that might be the best thing I ever made.  Quiche #1:  Made with leftover broccoli and cheese casserole and leftover macaroni and cheese. Quiche #2: Made with leftover creamed spinach, leftover ham, leftover parsley and leftover gouda cheese cubes.  Quiche is pretty easy:  4 eggs beat with a cup of milk or cream. I used whole milk which was leftover from my chocolate pudding pie. Then up to 2 cups of other toppings and a cup of cheese all put into a (pre-made in my case) deep dish pie crust.  BEST CREATIONS EVER.

Recipe and Ingredients for Quiches

Ingredients: Quiche #1

• 1 deep dish frozen pie crust (I used pillsbury)
• 4 eggs (lightly beaten)
• 1 cup whole milk (or you can use half and half or a 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup cream)  I used whole milk because I had it leftover from a chocolate pie and also because the add ins to the quiche already had cream in them
• Leftover broccoli and cheese casserole (I think it was about 1.5 cups ish)
• Leftover macaroni and cheese (I used about a cup)
• Note: I didn’t add extra cheese to this one as the casserole and Mac had plenty of cheese in it  

Ingredients: Quiche #2

• 1 deep dish frozen pie crust (I used pillsbury)
• 4 eggs (lightly beaten)
• 1 cup whole milk (or you can use half and half or a 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup cream)  I used whole milk because I had it leftover from a chocolate pie and also because the add ins to the quiche already had cream in them
• Leftover creamed spinach (I think it was about 1.5 cups ish)
• Leftover Honey baked ham (I used about 3 thick slices that I then cubed and pan fried to make brown and reduce the water in the ham. Water is the enemy of quiche)
• Leftover cheese cubes (about 1/2 cup or a little more of Gouda/white cheddar cubes from the charcuterie tray yesteray)
• Leftover parsley (a handful I chopped up). Note in hindsight I might have sautéed the parsley first to get a little water out. 

Method:

• I let the frozen pie crusts sit on the counter to thaw them out while I got some of the ingredients together and preheated the oven to 400 F
• After the pie crusts thawed a bit i poked the crusts all over with a fork  
• I then baked the crusts for about 8 minutes on 400  degrees. This doesn’t totally bake them but just baked them enough so the crust isn’t raw layer  
• While those are in the oven mix up the ingredients for your quiches. You will need 2 bowls (one for each quiche)  
• Break 4 eggs into each bowl and whisk up with a fork  
• Add your cup of milk to each bowl and whisk up 
• Add your respective fillings to each bowl and whisk with a fork until all combined and mixed together  
• Take crusts out
• Pour mixture into each crust
• Top with a little black pepper and a touch of salt (no salt in mixture because the mix ins already were well salted)
• I put them on a cookie sheet to bake in case any spillage 
• Lower oven to 350 F and bake 45 mins to 1 hour they won’t look completely set in the middle
• That’s ok
• Take them out anyway at max an hour (don’t over bake)
• Let sit on the counter patiently for 15-30 minutes before cutting it
• Eat warm or wait another couple hours til room temperature 

YUM! You can get creative with the leftovers you have and the flavors that you think would go together!!!