I'm a Geek for Greek

Greek food that is... though Greek men aren't bad either. And the Grecian Islands are second to none. And I love Greek inspired fashions.... 

Anyway, today we are reveling in the wonders of Greek food! I was having a real hankering for Greek food over Spring Break last week and to squelch this craving, not to mention transport my family to Greece for a little while on Spring Break, we made this delicious, healthy, and pretty authentic Greek meal (nevermind the fact that we were watching the NCAA tournament games while preparing it in the kitchen.)

Tzatziki (Greek yogurt dipping sauce)

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, grated, and salted

1 16oz. container fat free plain Greek yogurt

2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely minced

the juice of 1 lemon

1/4 chopped fresh dill

salt and pepper, to taste

Salt your grated cucumber (about 1 tsp) in order to draw out the water in the cucumber; mix and set aside. Mix the rest of your ingredients. Squeeze the excess water out of your cucumber and add to the yogurt mixture. Mix and chill.

Use half of this dipping sauce to marinate your chicken (around a pound and a half) for at least 24 hours. Skewer the chicken chunks and grill.

I'm also a geek for Shelby's great photography! We have the pleasure of viewing a few posts worth of her pictures this week - buckle up, they are pretty awesome!

We paired our wonderfully marinated, cut-it-with-a-fork tender grilled chicken (which had to be grilled in the pouring rain by my dad ducking out from under an awning to flip the skewers, what a trouper) with a Greek inspired orzo salad. Orzo is a wheat based pasta, just like spaghetti or penne, but is shaped like rice, as you can see below. It cooks super fast, takes on a lot more flavor than rice does, and can be found in whole wheat versions for those of you out there who care about whole grains like I do. We tossed our orzo with yellow bell pepper, celery, cucumber, lots of fresh parsley, and a vinaigrette of lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, and celery seed (Finally! An application for that tricky celery seed that is hiding in the back of your spice rack.)

Final plating - Greek orzo salad, feta cheese, fresh cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, tzatziki , warmed whole wheat pita bread, and grilled tzatziki marinated chicken.