Greek-Marinated Chicken and Veggie Kabobs

Howdy Y’all! I’ve been quite busy with my food cart these past couple of weeks, and have enjoyed some great successes, including catering a wedding party, and a back-to-back First Friday Art Walk and Saturday morning Farmer’s Market. I have had so much fun meeting all the people who visit me and order my tacos, but it certainly doesn’t leave me a lot of time for blogging and cooking for my own family.

Here is a photo my husband took during First Friday of me slinging tacos to the hungry folks. There were hundreds of people gathered in the courtyard who enjoyed square-dancing to music by a great folk band. The kiddos were having a blast!

First Friday Art Walk

Since we are in the throes of summer-time heat, I thought I’d reblog a recipe of mine from a couple of years ago. It sure sounds perfect for tonight’s meal! Enjoy!

Greek-Marinated Chicken and Veggie Kabobs

Grilling season is my favorite time of the year! OK, maybe tied with soup season. But when it’s hot out, I love grilling every night. The kitchen doesn’t get hot, and it’s always easy clean up!

I marinated some chicken today in Greek seasonings, sliced up some veggies, skewered the heck out of them, then slapped them on the grill. A couple of turns later, well, it’s dinner time on the deck!

I wanted to serve this with rice, but hubby said he wanted potatoes. So I compromised and cooked pasta with herbs instead, HA! I hope you enjoy this simple summer dinner.

Greek-Marinated Chicken and Veggie Kabobs

3/4 pound boneless chicken (breasts or thighs)
Sliced or whole veggies of choice, in uniform size
1/2 large lemon, juiced (about 2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon fresh minced oregano
Ground black pepper, to taste

Prepping the Marinade and Chicken

Cut the chicken into uniform chunks, about a half-inch in width/height. Prep all your veggies and keep cool, if needed. In a small glass bowl, add the lemon juice, garlic, yogurt, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, minced oregano, and ground black pepper. Whisk until smooth and completely blended. Pour 3/4 of the marinade over the chicken in a quart zip-top/lock baggie and add the chicken and squish around until covered. Refrigerate for at least one hour or up to three.

Chicken and Veggies Ready to Grill

Add 2 more tablespoons of olive oil to the remaining marinade and whisk until smooth again and refrigerate. This will be used for your veggies. After the chicken is done marinating (about 45 minutes before you want to eat), skewer the chicken and veggies, in any combination you want and place on a large baking tray. I used sliced squash, zucchini, red onion, and cherry and grape tomatoes, but really you can use any vegetables that you want. Brush the remaining marinade over the veggies on all sides.

Grilling the Kabobs

Place skewers on the grill, and cook for about 10 minutes on each side, flipping once halfway through the cooking time. Depending on the shape of your chicken, you might have to do quarter-turn flips. Remove from grill and place on tray and cover with foil for a few minutes. We served this with pasta, but you could also do rice or potatoes. Just time your cooking of that side accordingly with this, OR just eat lots of chicken and veggies! Enjoy!

Download and Print this Yummy Recipe!

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Summertime Shrimp Rolls

Summertime Shrimp Roll

You know how those fancy-schmancy lobster rolls get all the attention? Well thanks to fellow foodie blogger Tom over at The Bonafide Farm Food Journal we can all now enjoy what he calls “the lobster roll’s better more lovable brother.” Hop on over to his blog and read about what he thinks! It’s a good read.

I adapted his recipe to make only two sandwiches since my daughter was away that night for dinner. I also lightened it up a bit and used half mayo, half lowfat Greek yogurt. This hoagie just came out INCREDIBLE! It’s not only pretty to look at, it is pretty danged delicious. And it’s super-easy to make, too. Try it, you’ll like it!

Summertime Shrimp Rolls (Makes 2 Sandwiches)
Adapted from The Bonafide Farm Food Journal/Tom Hirschfeld

1/2 pound large, raw deveined shrimp
1/4 cup English cucumber, diced
4 sugar snap peas, cut crosswise into thin rounds (about 2 tablespoons)
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 heaping tablespoon mayonnaise
1 heaping tablespoon 2% fat Greek yogurt
1/4 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
Sea salt, to taste
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
2 hoagie rolls of choice (I used sesame seed)
Red or green leaf lettuce

Shrimp Roll Ingredients

Bring a 2-quart pot of water with 1 tablespoon of salt up to a roiling boil. Add the shrimp and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain the shrimp in a colander and run cold water over them. Remove the shells and tails then chop the shrimp into 1/2-inch pieces and add to a mixing bowl.

Chopped Shrimp and Veggies

Add the rest of the ingredients except the rolls and lettuce to the shrimp. Mix until well-combined.

Split the buns from the top, line with leaves of lettuce and top with the shrimp salad. Serve with sliced dill pickles and potato chips.

Summertime Shrimp Roll

Download and Print this Yummy Recipe!

 

Summertime Heat Grilled Burger Sliders and Fries Meal

Grilled Burger Sliders and Fries Meal

The heat has finally amped up in Central Oregon, and being in the mid-90s with no A/C means salads and outdoor grilling and cooking! Last night we had chef’s salad out on the back deck. The night before, more grilled tortilla pizzas with pepperoni, mushrooms, black olives and onions. (See, I told you we would be eating those grilled tortilla pizzas all summer!)

Tonight, my husband made this meal in its entirety, so I take no claim to it, but seeing as I haven’t posted a new recipe in awhile I decided to share with you.

If you have some hot days on the horizon, this is a great meal choice. And I just love King’s Hawaiian rolls as a slider bun choice. They are so moist, ever so slightly sweet, but still hold up well to a slider burger.

Since you can use any condiments/veggies you’d like on a slider burger and prep the ground burger any way you’d like, no recipe really but just some photos through his process. We had to wait for a sudden thunder-boomer to pass over to finally get this on the grill, hence some lower light photos. But it was all delicious!

Summertime Heat Grilled Slider Burgers and Fries Meal

Season and prep the burger into mini-patties, then slice up your veggies and fries. Put your veggies (we had mushrooms and onion) on a foil-made pan. Wrap King’s Hawaiian rolls in foil. Preheat your grill and if you have an outdoor burner and cast-iron skillet, turn the burner on too and preheat the oil. If not, you could use your indoor burner (at risk of heating up the house!) Put those fries on first at least 5 or so minutes before anything else as they’ll take longer.

Frying the Fries on Grill Burner

Then put the burgers and veggies on the lower rack of grill, and the buns on the top rack. Monitor the burgers and veggies as needed, as well as the fries. Flip the burgers around the 5-minute mark, and stir the veggies and fries.

Burger Slider Meal on Grill

After you flip over the burger sliders, add any kind of cheese on top if you want. Hubby used thick chunks of Monterrey Jack cheese, but you could be more conservative on that if you want. (No, those are NOT slices of butter!)

Burger Sliders with Monterrey Jack Cheese

When the cheese is melted and the burgers are done to your liking, remove them to a plate. Remove the warmed slider buns, too. Finish cooking the fries, if they aren’t already done, and let drain on paper towels. Dress each of your slider burgers up as desired. Aside from the onions and mushrooms, I added a light layer of mayo to each side of the bun, and a fresh tomato slice. Serve with fries.

Grilled Burger Sliders and Fries Meal