Greek-Inspired Feast

Well, hi, friends!  It's been too long!

I'm back for a surprise appearance!

So, at my parents' house, we have a garden.  It's been very warm and rainy here in MD, and therefore the garden has just exploded with growth!  That, coupled with working at an organic market and two Costco memberships in the house, means we sometimes have an over-abundance of produce that needs to be cooked.

I cannot emphasize enough, though, the growth in the garden.  Oregano, basil, thyme, mint, cilantro, parsley, dill, kale, chard, squash, peppers, tomatoes, green beans...it's ridiculous.  Oh, and there's a cucumber plant in there somewhere, but I'm afraid the squash is gonna choke it out.

I had to cut out at least half of our thyme and oregano that were taking over the garden.

Who needs coat hooks?  Those are for herb drying!

Some of the massive amounts of Swiss chard that are springing forth.

So, the following is what I'm preparing right now in order to get rid of some of what we have laying around!

Keftedes-Inspired Burgers
1 pound 20/80 ground beef
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh oregano
3 T. finely chopped mint
3 garlic cloves, crushed and minced
1 egg
Zest of 1/2 a lemon
Salt & pepper

Preheat your grill to medium-high or high heat.

Mix together ingredients in a small bowl.  Allow to sit for at least one hour in the fridge.

Form into four equal-sized patties and grill over high heat for about 5 minutes on each side  (for a well-done burger).

Marinated Portabella Mushroom Caps
3 large portabella caps, washed and dried
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 T. olive oil
2 T. balsamic vinegar
Salt & pepper to taste
2 T. finely chopped fresh oregano

Toss ingredients into a ziploc bag and allow to marinate for at least 1 hour.  Shake it around every now and then to redistribute.

Grill over high heat for about 4 minutes on each side, or until charred and tender.

Mediterranean Sauteed Greens and Beans

2 T. olive oil
1-2 bunches of Swiss chard, chopped
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup white wine
1 15-oz can of cannelini beans, drained and rinsed
A handful of cherry tomatoes
Salt & pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Toss in chopped chard stems and cherry tomatoes.  Allow to cook until the tomatoes are tender and squishy.

Toss in your chopped chard.  It will look like a lot, but trust me, it cooks down.

Once the greens have cooked down, add the white wine, beans, lemon zest, lemon juice, and garlic cloves.  Allow to simmer, cooking off the liquid.

Before serving, season with salt and pepper and allow to cook a bit more.  Taste and serve!

Greek-Style Zucchini
2 T. olive oil
1 1/2 pounds zucchini/summer squash, sliced into 1/2 inch think pieces (if large, quarter them, if medium, half them)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 red onion, sliced
Zest of 1/2 a lemon, juice of a whole lemon
Salt & pepper to taste
1/3 cup chopped fresh oregano

Heat your olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add in your sliced onion and cook until tender.

Add in the garlic and zucchini.  Cook for 10 minutes over medium heat, until the zucchini begins to soften.

Now add in 2/3 of your oregano and the lemon zest and juice.  Stir to combine.

If you are impatient like me for the zucchini to cook through, you can place a lid over the top so the squash cooks faster.  Make sure it's not too liquidy by leaving a gap.

Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve, sprinkling with the remaining oregano.

Serve everything with a healthy sprinkling of feta cheese!

Who ever said low carb and gluten free had to be boring?

Links!

Good day, everyone!

No need to remind me that it's been almost a month since my last post.  I know.

Work has me very busy (I'm full-time with a schedule ALL over the place) and I honestly haven't much time to cook, let alone blog it.

I promise I'll get better at managing my time.

Here's a link post for you all, though.

Things I'm loving lately:

BREAKFAST:

I make a mish-mash of these two recipes: http://mouthwateringfoods.blogspot.com/2013/03/chocolate-steel-cut-oats.html and http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/2012/04/chocolate-banana-baked-oatmeal-359.html.  I'm obsessed with overnight oats.  So simple (throw everything in your slow-cooker and leave it!) and delicious, with so many options!  It makes morning meals really quick and tasty.  The browned bits on the edges are sometimes the best thing ever.

Protein pancakes are awesome!  Some recipes are paleo, some are low-carb, but all are delicious!

DINNERS:

Brisket!  Brisket is so easy to find here!  We made this BBQ brisket recipe with my parents one night.  *drools* So good.  We used a local place's barbecue sauces and it was divine.

This vegan kabocha-lentil curry is fantastic and flavorful, though I recommend doubling the spices (and definitely add the tomatoes.

I would have these sweet potato burgers daily if I could!  I used coconut flour instead of quinoa and added flax and another egg.  They weren't as solid as the photos seem but oh my gosh were they tasty!

DESSERT:

The last two weeks have been filled with one dessert requested twice by my husband:  Lemon meringue pie. We've used Alton Brown's recipe and it's soooo good!  For gluten-free people, I suggest this pie crust recipe.  It's still not 100% foolprood, but it tastes great.

Sweet Pork "Barbacoa"

Ingredients:

2.5-3 lb. pork shoulder, bone-in

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 T. chili powder
1 t. paprika (I did half normal and half "half-sharp")
1/2 t. ancho chili powder
1 t. course salt

1 T. tomato paste
1.5 cups chicken broth

6-7 cloves garlic, peeled
1 onion, thickly sliced

Instructions:

Place the pork shoulder in a Dutch oven OR slow-cooker.  If you're using a Dutch oven, preheat your oven to 325 degrees F.

Mix your brown sugar and spices together in a bowl until well-mixed.  Add in the tomato paste and chicken broth.  Pour over the pork shoulder.

Toss in the garlic and sliced onion.

Cook in preheated oven for 4-5 hours, OR on low heat in the slow-cooker for 8 hours.

Once the meat is falling off the bone and much of the cooking liquid is gone, pull out the bone.  Shred. Place back in the oven, uncovered, to reduce any remaining liquid.

The original recipe said that this was to be served in tacos, burritos, enchiladas, etc, but I find it far less of a Mexican-esque flavor and more of a barbecue one.  It's quite sweet.

Also, look at my new pretty knife :D!  It's a Shun Ken-Onion chef knife.  This this is scary sharp.  One must respect it.  My Christmas present from my amazing husband!

Greek-Inspired Chicken Burgers with Homemade Tzatziki

...and chickpeas braised with radish greens and spinach!

We had another sausage-making adventure this weekend (Charles had a few friends over to watch a videogame tournament final) and they were fantastic!  We used this recipe, but next time I will up some of the flavorings.  While it was delicious, I wish the sun-dried tomato flavor had been far more pronounced.  And the cheese kept melting out of the sausages on the grill!

I also made this very refreshing quinoa salad to go with it, which was a big hit, even among the men!  Quinoa is not one of my favorite things, as I often find it very bland.  But this came out very flavorful with a great crunch!  Definitely going in my mental book of things I will make over and over again.

A fun weekend was had by all, and I hope that you all had a great Labor Day!  I managed to run/walk a mile yesterday and today with no worsening foot pains, so hopefully *knockonwood* I'm on the road to total recovery!

Now, after a weekend of semi-indulgent eating and drinking (mostly the drinking part--GF beer, you will be my downfall!), I'm looking to make something lighter.  Yesterday morning, it was an omelette that was essentially a ton of vegetables with a little bit of egg mixed it (and, of course, Sriracha dumped on top).  Didn't eat lunch (one of those odd days where you're just not hungry at all), had the tiny bit of that quinoa salad left for a snack, and then leftovers for dinner.  Today, chicken burgers!

Chicken Burger

Ingredients:

1 pound of ground chicken or turkey (I home-ground 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
1 T. dried oregano
1 T. fresh basil, minced
2 green onions, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed (I, for once, used my garlic press to get a paste-like consistency)
1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1 t. lemon juice, plus a little zest
2 T. red wine vinegar
1 T. Kalamata olives, finely minced (I did not have these, but they're in the original recipe)
1 t. brine from olives
Black pepper to taste

Buns and toppings

Instructions:

Mix all ingredients for the patties together in a bowl.  Cover and let marinate in the fridge for an hour.

Divide into four equal patties.

Preheat your grill, broiler, or stovetop grill-pan to medium-high heat and cook for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through, or until juices run clear.

Top with tzatziki and your other toppings and enjoy!

Tzatziki

Ingredients:

1 head of garlic (yes, one HEAD of garlic...you can reduce that if you're not a garlic-nut like me!)
1 500-g container of Greek yogurt (thickest you can find)
1 English cucumber, seeded and peeled (if you so desire, I didn't)
2 T. red wine vinegar
1 T. lemon juice (start there, add more if you wish)
Salt & pepper, to taste

Many recipes include a bunch of parsley and mint, but I didn't have either on-hand.

Instructions:

Process the garlic and cucumber in a food processor until finely minced (use liquids from the recipe to aid in the processing).  Also, add herbs, if you are using them.

In some cheesecloth or a fine strainer, squeeze out all the water possible from the cucumber.

Mix everything together in a small-to-medium bowl and cover, refrigerating for at least an hour.  Taste after letting it sit, and correct any flavors to your taste.

Eat it on burgers, sandwiches, use it as dip, etc!

Braised Chickpeas with Radish Greens and Spinach

So, I bought some radishes over the weekend, and they came with a large bunch of greens attached.  I thought, "I can't just throw this out!  This has to be edible!" Lo and behold, it is!  Others compare to flavor to that of other bitter greens, like Swiss chard or kale, so use accordingly.

Ingredients:

1 T. olive oil
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 bunch radish greens (or other greens!), washed and dried
1 cup baby spinach, washed and dried
2 shallots (or 1 large), finely chopped
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine
Juice and zest of 1 lemon

Instructions:

Heat 1 T. oil in a deep saute pan over medium heat.  Cook shallots until translucent, then add lemon zest.

Add in chickpeas and saute for a minute or two.

Add in your liquids and bring to a simmer.  Allow liquid to cook down for about 10 minutes, and then add the greens. (I did the opposite and my greens ended up way overcooked).  Salt & pepper to your tastes.

Dinner is served!  Really, really delicious and healthy!

The "Juicy Lucy"

The "Juicy Lucy" is a style of cheeseburger in which the cheese is placed between two thin patties of burger. It leads to total melty-cheesy goodness when you bite into the burger, and that's just fabulous.

I don't have an exact recipe for burgers. I change up the spices for whatever I'm craving and pick whatever cheese we have in the fridge. So, take my ingredient approximations with a grain of salt. I never add breadcrumbs or egg to my burgers, either...we never needed it growing up, I don't know why people use it now.

Ingredients:

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 t. pepper
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
1 t. chili powder
1/2 t. garlic powder

A couple of slices of cheese of your choice (I had "cheddar" on hand)

Instructions:

Mix beef and spices together in a bowl, adjusting to your tastes and adding whatever you think you'd like. Use a potato masher or your hands, depending on how messy you want to get.

Divide your beef into 4 portions (or more...yeah, I made half pound burgers 'cause I'm crazy). Flatten the portions until they're patties about 1/3 inch thick. Place cheese in the center of two patties, and then top with another beef patty. Press the sides together to seal them closed, otherwise your cheese will escape!

Grill or cook on a griddle pan on medium-high heat until cooked to your preference and the cheese in the center is melty. For me, about 5-6 minutes on each side. Top with tomato, onion, lettuce, whatever you like. No buns to keep this low carb, and no fries!



I served mine with some chipotle mayonnaise and broccoli. Yum yum!