Saturday, July 30, 2011

Summer Souvlaki: Ohpa!

This dish is the result of my love of Mediterranean food and a desperate craving one night. Traditional souvlaki is made on a skewer with roasted vegetables and is served with pita. I am not a big fan of pita and I prefer thinly sliced chicken or lamb.

The joy of cooking is finding your own twist on dishes you love. I serve this with a nice garnish of pepperoncini and cucumber slices.

Summer Souvlaki with Tzatziki Sauce


Ingredients

2 chicken breasts or 1/2 lb leg of lamb, sliced thinly
2 pieces of flatbread
1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup cucumber, diced
1/2 cup tomato, diced
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup crumbled feta
1/4 cup kalamata olives
1/4 cup spanish olives
2 cups shredded romaine or spinach
1 roasted red pepper, julienned

Wrap bread in foil and keep warm in the oven.

In a large bowl, combine vinegar, lemon juice, oregano, thyme and pepper. Whisking constantly, add oil (pour slowly so the mixture has time to emulsify).

In a separate bowl, combine cucumber, tomatoes, onion, feta, olives and lettuce. Coat this mixture with 2 tbsp of the vinaigrette mixture and refrigerate.

Coat the chicken (or lamb) with the remaining vinaigrette mixture and grill. (This only takes about 3 or 4 minutes if sliced thinly.)

Remove flatbread from the oven.  Pour some tzatziki sauce over the flatbread (see recipe below) then top with vegetable mixture and chicken. Top with roasted red pepper and a little more tzatziki. Voila!

For tatziki sauce:

2 cups greek yogurt
1 cup cucumber, seeded and diced
2 tbsp olive oil
1tbsp lemon juice
3 cloves garlic, pressed
salt
pepper
fresh cilantro, chopped

Combine All ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend well. Chill for 1 hour before serving.




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