It's Greek To Me

Greek chicken salad
(see recipe below)

Our lake weekend included both torrential rain and glorious sunshine. We have enjoyed having a nearby spot to get away when "getting away" as we used to know it isn't happening. We did make a short road trip, though, to a place as socially distant as it's possible to be. We left early and drove an hour to visit a historic cemetery where some of the graves pre-date the Revolutionary War. It's where my great-grandparents were laid to rest nearly 100 years ago. The cemetery is located down a dirt road, in a patch of woods, near a town that faded away a long time ago. There are a few buildings left to remind us that it was a strong community way back when. Thank goodness for GPS. I thought I could remember how to get there, but it had been too long.

And then we were back at the lake house before lunch. I pulled out the leftovers from the night before and made Greek chicken salads. (See photo at the top.) I have craved different flavors as we continue our only-eat-at-home lifestyle. Flavors that we would normally have in restaurants. And I'm always on the lookout for easy recipes. This weekend meal is a keeper. Sadly, when I ordered my groceries this week for pickup, they were out of pita bread. That would have made this perfect. We made do with sandwich thins which tasted fine—but the tomatoes kept falling out!

GREEK CHICKEN

1 lb. chicken tenders, cut into chunks

1 tablespoon Greek seasoning, such as Cavender's

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (I used a good squeeze)

another tablespoon of olive oil for frying

15-30 minutes before cooking, mix chicken, Greek seasoning, 1 tablespoon olive oil and lemon juice and let marinade in the refrigerator while you prep the rest of the meal.

Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a large skillet. Add chicken in a single layer. Let it cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Don't stir, so that it will brown. Turn chicken pieces over and brown the other side. (It's done when internal temp is 165º.) Serve hot.

And Greek chicken requires tzatziki sauce to go with it. I wish I had known how easy this is to make at home years ago. I will say that I started with a simple recipe and tweaked it a couple of times after we starting eating supper—added more garlic, tasted, then stirred in a little vinegar and a splash of olive oil.  The original, of course, used regular yogurt. I had fat-free Greek yogurt on had and I think that's why I needed to make adjustments. Trust your own tastebuds. Here is what I ended up with:

EASY TZATZIKI SAUCE

1 cup fat-free Greek yogurt

1 medium to large cucumber, peeled and grated

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon dried dill weed

1/2  teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon white wine vinega/r

1/2 - 1 teaspoon olive oil (I just used a "drizzle")

Grate cucumber into colander and press to remove liquid. Press with paper towel to remove the remaining liquid. This will keep the sauce from being watery. In a bowl, stir together with remaining ingredients. Taste and adjust seasonings. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving. Will keep 2-4 days in refrigerator. 

It was also good as a dip with crackers the next day.

 

Saturday's Supper

 

Steak & Asparagus with Feta Cream Sauce

We stayed home this weekend and did lazy things. Watched a couple of movies. (Woman In Gold was my favorite of the two.)  Finished a couple of books. (Delicious! by Ruth Reichl was pretty good.)  Worked on a new knitting project. Watched it rain a little. And we cooked one delicious meal.

The miserably hot summer temperatures have eased up and we can finally enjoy being out on our porch again. The hummingbirds kept us company at breakfast time all weekend. Coffee. Newspaper. Hummingbirds. Porch. Life is good.

I counted five of them on Saturday as they fought and chased each other away from the feeder. But for one moment, these four managed to get along for about three seconds.

Now back to our Saturday supper. There isn't anything easier than throwing steaks on the grill. And nothing that Daddy-O loves better. But instead of both of us eating a big ribeye, I went in a slightly different direction. I chose a flat iron steak to go on the grill and then we sliced it thinly and served it on top of roasted asparagus.

Serving steak like this is a way to stretch your meat budget. And some of you might be looking to cut back on the amount of meat you eat for health reasons. But this supper was all about the sauce. It only took a few minutes to mix it together. It turned an already good meal into something special. Give it a try.

FETA CREAM SAUCE
      —adapted from The Kitchn

(6-oz) package crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh chives

Combine feta, sour cream, vinegar and olive oil in food processor or blender. Blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste and pulse the blender one more time. Pour sauce into a bowl and stir in chives.

We thinly sliced the flat iron steak and arranged it over the roasted asparagus. Then we spooned the sauce over it all.


What did you do over the weekend? Did you try any new recipes? Read a book you'd recommend?

Tastes Like Spring

This is one of my favorite desserts for spring. And it's about the easiest thing to make ever. It is fresh and light and makes a beautiful presentation. What more could you ask? It was our Easter dessert a few days ago.

"Pi Day" occurred when I was out visiting the grandchildren a few weeks ago. A local shop was selling pie slices to commemorate the day. Mommy called to asked which flavor I wanted and proceeded to rattle off a long list of wonderful pies. So hard to choose! But I decided on a Lemon-Blueberry Chess pie. And it was perfect. Everyone that day got a different flavor but I am pretty sure mine was the best. Lemon and blueberry is a winning combination. Those flavors are repeated in this easy recipe.

You can use a bought angel food cake, make one from a mix or go wild and make it from scratch. We opted for using a mix this time. And the topping is just quickly stirred together.

LEMON BLUEBERRY DESSERT

1/2 cup lemon yogurt (4 or 5 oz.)

1/2 cup Cool Whip (use the yogurt container to measure the Cool Whip)

1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

1-1/2 cups fresh blueberries

2 to 4 teaspoons powdered sugar

angel food cake

Stir together yogurt, Cool Whip and lemon peel. Spoon over angel food cake. Spoon berries over the top and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Garnish with lemon slice and fresh mint leaves.

Topping will make 4-5 servings  (It's easy enough to increase. It is just equal amounts of yogurt and Cool Whip.)

I used a lemon mousse whipped yogurt this time. It was the only lemon yogurt my store sold. It worked well. I have used a lemon Greek yogurt before but the Greek yogurt makes a stiffer topping--still delicious but I like a regular yogurt best. If you want to use fat-free or reduced fat products, those will work, too.


Reality check: I was sitting with my knitting group yesterday when a woman with her service dog came into the store where we meet. She was telling the shop owner some long tale about how the dog had helped in an emergency situation recently. The only part my ears really picked up was when she said, "I was near an elderly Sunday School class and this lady in the class—I think she was about 65—started having problems..."

All that registered were the words "elderly" and "65." The sad part was I didn't think this lady was particularly young herself.  I'll buy that 65 can be called "old" but "elderly?" Really?

Happy Easter!

Another Easter has come and gone. 

We enjoyed some family time with the "big kids" 

who came home for the weekend.

They dyed Easter eggs.

They flew a kite.

We went to church together and came home for Easter dinner.

I told them that this was the smallest Easter dinner I have ever cooked. 

My cold/allegry just kept me from doing more.

But it was enough to fill a plate.

And to send them home with leftovers.

I probably should have posted the ham glaze recipe before Easter, but here it is now. Better late than never! It's the same one I used last year when I cooked Easter dinner for Mommy and her family out in the midwest. Baking a ham is about the easiest thing you can possibly do. Baking it at home is a much more economical way to do it. A grocery store spiral-sliced ham cost twice as much as the unsliced ham. And a spiral-sliced ham from the "ham store" costs 4 to 5 times as much. At least know this most basic way is a reasonable option for you.

I bought a fully-cooked semi-boneless half ham—just over 6 lbs. At Easter, they are easy to find. They were displayed at several places in my grocery store. We followed the directions on the label, baking it for 20 minutes per pound at 325 degrees. I scored the outside and covered it with foil for most of the baking time. Daddy-O added the glaze for the last 40-45 minutes and left the foil off to finish the baking.

This glaze is easy and it's delicious.

EASY BROWN SUGAR-MUSTARD GLAZE

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

3 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon pineapple juice

In a small bowl, mix all ingredients until well blended.

Brush glaze over ham during last 45 minutes of baking. 

Double the recipe for a larger ham. Can also use glaze on pork chops or pork roast.

And the midwest family? Little Sister told me last night that she found "a million eggs!" at the Easter egg hunt out there. It is fun to be four.