Wednesday, November 21, 2012

OPA!

Last week’s dinner theme was “Greek”! Gyros have to be one of my favorite things, but one thing I
have learned…Greek food is not cheap to make! But is it worth it? Tastebuds say “Yessss!”

Main Course: Gyros w/ Tzatziki Sauce
Prepared by: Sabrina
2 lbs Gyro Meat (makes 6-8 gyros)
Pitas (or flatbread)
Red Onion
Tomato
2 cups plain Greek Yogurt
1 ½ medium Cucumber
¾ Garlic Clove
1 Tablespoon Dill
3 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
Salt to Taste
Directions (Sauce): It’s best to make the tzatziki sauce (ahem…”cucumber sauce”) hours before the
meal so all the flavors blend well together. If you do not have Greek yogurt, you may strain regular
plain yogurt (if you don’t have a yogurt strainer…and honestly – who does??)– by using coffee filters to
remove excess liquid.
Peel and seed cucumbers and place in a strainer above a bowl.
Heavily salt the cucumbers (about a tablespoon…this is to pull some of the moisture out of the
cucumbers)
Let cucumbers strain for about 30 minutes. Not much liquid to be removed, but enough!
In large bowl, add greek yogurt
With paper towel, dry off/soack up the cucumbers, and dice them.
Chop/blend the cucumbers, garlic,and dill (add to yogurt)
Stir it up, add lemon juice, and a pinch of salt to taste!
Let refrigerate for at least 2 hours for flavors to blend.
Directions (Gyros): Pan fry gyro meat until browned (but not crispy) on both side. ( I like to place them
on a paper towel to absorb any grease first….maybe I just do this because they are cut in strips like
bacon)
Grab your pita, place gyro meat, tomato slices, and red onion, add tzatziki sauce and enjoy!
Side Dish: Greek Salad
Prepared by: Kala
4 Cups Raw Spinach
1/2 Cup Artichoke Hearts
8 Cherry Tomatoes (in halves)
½ Cup Feta Cheese
8 Peppadews
¼ Cup Red Onion
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar
1.5 teaspoons Oregano
1.5 teaspoons Basil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Directions (Per salad): For the dressing, mix Olive Oil, Vinegar, Oregano, Basil, salt and pepper. Split
Salad ingredients among 4 bowls and add the dressing to each!
And another side:  Stuffed Peppadews
Prepared by: Kala
Easy Peasy - stuff Peppadews with either feta or goat cheese (tonight we used feta)!  YUM!
Dessert: Baklava
Prepared by: Stephanie
1 (16oz) pkg Phyllo Dough
1 lb Chopped Nuts
1 Cup Butter
1 Cup Water
1 Cup Sugar
½ Cup Honey
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.
Grease 9x13 pan.
Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon, set aside.
Unroll phyllo dough and cut whole stack in half to fit in pan.
(Cover phyllo w/ dampened cloth so it doesn’t dry out while you are preparing in the pan section)
Place 2 sheets of dough in pan and butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered.
Sprinkle 2-3 Tablespoons of cinnamon nut mixture on top.
Top with 2 sheets of dough, butter and nuts (layered). The top layer should be 6-8 sheets deep.
Using sharp knife, cut into diamond or square shapes.
Bake for 50 minutes (until golden crisp)
While baking, boil sugar and water until sugar is melted, then add vanilla and honey and simmer for 20
minutes.
Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool.
Time consuming? Yes. Messy? Yes. Worth it? YES!
Next up: Italian Night! Until next time, “OPA!”

Monday, November 12, 2012

Mexican Night!!

We decided it was high time we had a Mexican themed dinner night, and what-ho, was it ever a great idea! It was on Halloween night too, so while ghouls, goblins, and drunken teenagers in pillow cases stomped up the porch, we dined on our awesome food. And maybe some candy too, just a piece each or so, I wasn't really counting......


Candy Corn and Peanuts snack

- 3 cups Candy Corn
- 1 cup Salted Peanuts
Directions: Toss in a large bowl


Homemade Corn Chips
-1 package corn tortillas
-canola oil spray
- lime juice
-salt
-cumin (to flavor)
Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut tortillas into fourths, and spray with canola oil on both sides. Sprinkle salt, lime juice  and cumin over tops and bake 10 minutes, or until crispy.


 3-Cheese Enchiladas
-12 corn tortillas
- 28oz can enchilada sauce
-3 cups cheese (part cheddar, part 3 pepper cheese) 
-2-3 tbsp oil
-1/3 onion. 
Directions: Coat each tortilla with oil, and  bake at 500 degrees for 7 min. Pour enough sauce in bottom of 9x13 glass dish to cover. Pour rest of sauce in large bowl & dip tortillas in it. Put cheese & onion in tortillas, and  fold side down in dish. Put leftover cheese/sauce/onion on top. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 min.


Corn and Black Bean Salsa

-1 1/4 oz. can whole kernel corn, drained
-1  can black beans, rinsed and drained 
-1 medium sweet red pepper diced
-1 medium tomato diced
-6 green onions, chopped 
-1/2 c. chopped red onion 
-1 jalapeno pepper chopped
-1 garlic clove, minced 
-3/4 c. Italian salad dressing (can use regular, low fat or fat-free) 
-1 Tbsp. minced fresh cilantro 
-1 Tbsp. lime or lemon juice 
-1 Tablespoon hot pepper sauce 
-1 teaspoon. chili powder 

Directions:In a large bowl, combine the first 8 ingredients. Then mix remaining ingredients and add to the mixture and toss.