Friday, March 8, 2013

Greek Salad



It's no secret to my friends and family that the wife and I have been on health kick. Working out everyday and running outside on the weekends has been our forte as of late. This has in turn, started making us add healthier choices to our menu's rotation.

This is a recipe for a salad that I just came up with because I wanted all the ingredients of a gyro but without any of the pita bread (even though it's SO GOOD). I absolutely love it because it's not only delicious but good for you. You can add anything you wish to this salad and it will be great. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact me.

Kitchen Notes
* You can add things like peperoncinis (which I have no idea why I left it out of this recipe) and olives.
* You can use whatever kind of lettuce you'd like, even spinach would work.
* If you don't have Greek oregano regular oregano work fine.

* If you can't find Greek feta than any other feta will work.
* If you don't want to grill the chicken you can just bake them off.
* Makes 4 servings as a meal


Ingredients
* Chicken Marinade *
* 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, divided
* 1 tablespoon white wine
* 1 tablespoon lemon juice
* 2 cloves garlic minced
* 1/2 teaspoon Greek oregano
* 1/2 teaspoon dried dill
* 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1/2 teaspoon pepper
* 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

* Greek Vinaigrette *
* 1 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1 teaspoon Greek oregano
* 1 teaspoon dried basil
* 1/2 teaspoon dried dill
* 1/2 teaspoon pepper
* 1 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
* 3/4 cup red wine vinegar
* 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

* The Salad *
* 4 heads of romaine lettuce washed and chopped
* 1 english cucumber seeds removed then quartered and chopped
* 6 roma tomatoes sliced into strips
* 1 red onion sliced
* 1 can garbanzo beans drained and rinsed
* 6 peperoncinis sliced thin (not pictured)
* 1/2 pound Greek feta crumbled

The Process
1. Combine all the ingredients for the chicken marinade and submerge the chicken in it. Let sit on the counter and marinade while you're preparing the other ingredients flipping occasionally.
2. Combine all the dried ingredients for the vinaigrette then whisk in the vinegar. When the salt has dissolved whisk in the olive oil until fully mixed together. Put in the fridge until serving time.
3. Preheat your grill to high. When the grill is hot add the chicken and cook for 7 minutes then flip and cook for an additional 7 minutes. Remove from heat. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before slicing each chicken breast into thin strips.
4. On a chilled plate, add the lettuce, onion, cucumber, beans, tomatoes, peperoncinis and then finally the feta. Add the sliced warm chicken on top of each salad.
5. Dress each salad with the vinaigrette and eat immediately.
6. Enjoy!