Greek Tortellini Salad

 Greek Tortellini Salad

twopeasandtheirpod.com

Servings: 8

Ingredients

For the Salad:
1 20 ounce package refrigerated cheese tortellini
1 1/2 cups grape tomatoes cut in half
1 large cucumber chopped
1 cup kalamata olives pit removed and chopped
1/2 red onion chopped
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
For the Dressing:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic minced
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and pepper to taste

Steps

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the tortellini according to the package directions. Drain the tortellini and rinse with cold water.
Place the tortellini in a large bowl. Add the tomatoes, cucumber, olives, red onion, and feta cheese.
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper. Pour the dressing over the salad and stir until salad is well coated. Serve immediately or place in the refrigerator.
Note-this salad will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Greek Tortellini Pasta Salad

 

Greek Tortellini Pasta Salad

lecremedelacrumb.com

Servings: Serves: 8-12

Ingredients

1 pound cheese tortellini pasta (either fresh, or dried - cooked according to package's instructions)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
½ red onion, diced
1 large cucumber, peeled and chopped
½ cup canned artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
½ cup kalamata olives (whole or sliced)
½ cup crumbled feta cheese (I use reduced fat)
⅓ cup packed fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
Greek Dressing:
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
⅓ cup apple cider vinegar
3 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon dried thyme
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
black pepper, to taste
juice of ½ lemon

Steps

Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar, cover and shake well.
In a large bowl combine tortellini, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, artichoke hearts, olives, feta cheese, and basil. Pour dressing over the top, then toss to combine.
Serve immediately OR cover and refrigerate up to 6 hours before serving.

Greek Couscous Salad

 

Greek Couscous Salad (Meal Prep Option)

chelseasmessyapron.com

Servings: 6 meal prep servings

Ingredients

Salad:
2 packages (4.7 ounces each) Pearled Couscous Mix (I use one made by Near East) Roasted Garlic & Olive Oil flavored
1 english (or hothouse) cucumber, coarsely chopped
3 bell peppers (1 red, 1 green, 1 yellow), coarsely chopped
1/2 of 1 large red onion, chopped
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup flat leaf Italian parsley, finely chopped
2 cans (15 ounces EACH) chickpeas
Feta cheese, to taste
1 lemon, cut into wedges
Salad Dressing:
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper

Steps

Prepare the couscous mix according to package instructions making sure to add in the seasoning mix. If you don't use couscous from a package, you'll want to add some of your favorite seasonings because a lot of the flavor in this salad comes from that seasoning.
While the couscous is cooking, prep the veggies: coarsely chop the cucumber, the peppers, the red onion, and cherry tomatoes. Finely chop the parsley. To take the "bite" out of the raw red onion you can soak it in cold water (or freshly squeezed lemon juice) for about 10 minutes.
Drain and rinse the chickpeas. If desired, roast them in the oven (see the last paragraph in this post).
Prepare the dressing by adding all of the dressing ingredients to a mason jar. (I add about 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, but add to your personal preference). Seal the jar and shake until combined.
TO SERVE AS A SALAD: Add the prepared couscous to a large bowl and allow to cool. Add in all of the veggies and chickpeas. Add in some feta cheese, freshly squeezed lemon, salt and pepper to taste, and the dressing. Only dress what you will enjoy as this salad doesn't sit well for a long time with the dressing on it.
TO MEAL PREP: Divide the dressing evenly into 6 small containers. Divide the couscous evenly among 6 meal prep containers. Next add in equal parts of all of the chopped veggies and chickpeas. Add a lemon wedge, some feta cheese, and cover everything with some salt and pepper. To enjoy, add the dressing, squeeze the lemon over everything, stir together, and eat!

Greek Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki

 

Greek Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki

recipetineats.com

Servings: 4 - 6

Ingredients

2 lb / 1 kg boneless skinless chicken thigh fillets
Marinade:
3 large garlic cloves , minced (~ 3 tsp)
1 tbsp white wine vinegar (or red wine or apple cider vinegar)
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp Greek yoghurt
1 1/2 tbsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
Black pepper
Tzatziki:
2 cucumbers (to make about 1/2 - 3/4 cup grated cucumber after squeezing out juice)
1 1/4 cups plain Greek yoghurt
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (or more if you want richer)
1/2 garlic clove , minced
1/2 tsp salt
Black pepper
Salad:
3 tomatoes , desseeded and diced
3 cucumbers , diced
1/2 red spanish onion , peeled and finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves
Salt and pepper
To Serve:
4 to 6 pita breads or flat breads

Steps

Place the Marinade ingredients in a ziplock bag and massage to mix. Add the chicken into the ziplock bag and massage to cover all the chicken in the Marinade. Marinate for at least 2 hours, preferably 3 hours, ideally 12 hours and no longer than 24 hours.
Make the Tzatziki:
Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise. Use a teaspoon to scrape the watery seeds out. Coarsely grate the cucumber using a box grater. Then wrap in paper towels or a tea towel and squeeze to remove excess liquid.
Place cucumber in a bowl. Add remaining ingredients then mix to combine. Set aside for at least 20 minutes for the flavours to meld.
Salad:
Combine ingredients in a bowl.
Cook Chicken:
Brush the outdoor grill with oil, then preheat on medium high. Or heat 1 tbsp of oil in a fry pan over medium high heat.
Remove chicken from Marinade. Cook the chicken for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until golden brown and cooked through (cooking time depends on size of chicken).
Remove the chicken from the grill / fry pan onto a plate. Cover loosely with foil and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Assemble Gyros:
If your chicken thighs are large, you may need to cut them. Mine were small.
Get a pita bread or flatbread (preferably warmed) and place it on a piece of parchment (baking) paper (or you could use foil). Place some Salad down the middle of the bread, then top with chicken and Tzatziki.
Roll the wrap up, enclosing it with the parchment paper. Twist the end with the excess parchment paper to secure it.
I prefer to lay everything out on a table and let everyone help themselves.

Notes

This recipe makes a generous amount of Tzatziki. But better to have too much than not enough!
This recipe serves 4 to 6 people. Depending on how robust appetites are!
I don't recommend freezing the chicken in the marinade for this particular recipe because the yoghurt separates and goes grainy, and I don't know what that will do to the chicken. While the tenderising / flavour infusion should still work, I think it might not look that nice when cooked.
Nutrition per serving assuming this serves 6.

Greek Butter Crescents

 

Greek Butter Crescents

tasteofhome.com

Servings: 

Ingredients

1 pound butter, melted and cooled
3-1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, divided
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder

Steps

Preheat oven to 400°. In a large bowl, beat butter and 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar until blended. Beat in egg yolk and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour and baking powder; gradually stir into creamed mixture until blended (mixture will be crumbly). Shape heaping tablespoons of dough into crescents. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 12-15 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool 15 minutes.
Place remaining sugar in a small bowl. Toss slightly cooled cookies in sugar; return cookies to wire rack to cool completely. Toss cookies in sugar once more before serving. Store in an airtight container, adding any remaining confectioners' sugar to cover cookies.

Greek Butter Chicken

 

Greek Chicken

recipetineats.com

Servings: Servings 4 - 5 peopleTap or hover to scale

Ingredients

1.25 kg / 2.5 lb drumsticks and chicken thighs , bone in skin on (Note 1)
MARINADE:
6 garlic cloves , minced (~ 2 tbsp)
2 tbsp white wine vinegar (or red wine or apple cider vinegar)
1/2 cup / 125 ml lemon juice
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3/4 cup Greek yogurt (I use Farmers Union)
1 1/2 tbsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
SERVING (OPTIONAL):
Plain Greek yogurt or Tzatziki
Fresh oregano leaves (optional)

Steps

Mix Marinade ingredients in a large bowl.
Add chicken and coat well. Marinade for 24 hours (3 hours minimum).
Preheat oven to 180C.350F.
Line a tray with foil (trust me), place rack on tray (optional).
Place chicken on rack (reserve marinade), skin side up. Bake 30 minutes,
Remove from oven. Brush with marinade - do not flip.
Return to oven for 20 minutes or until golden and a bit crispy. Give it a spray of olive oil just before it's done if you want an extra crispy, shiny coat.
Rest for a few minutes before serving. Juicy and tasty enough to serve plain but extra great with tzatziki or even some plain yogurt.

Notes

This recipe will also work great with wings (same cook time and temp), breast (bash with fist to 2cm / 4/5" even thickness, cook 20 minutes at 200C/390F), skinless boneless thigh (20 minutes at 200C / 390F), basting at about 15 minutes.
If using boneless thighs or breast, I would actually recommend cooking on the stove instead! Medium high, breast for 3 minutes on each side, thigh 4 minutes on each side.
MAKE AHEAD: Place chicken in marinade, then pop straight into the freezer. Defrost 24 hours in the fridge - during this time it will marinade. Cooked chicken can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months, but fresh is always best!
Based on the marinade from Greek Chicken Gyros.
Use Tzatziki recipe in this  Greek Chicken Gyros.
Nutrition is overstated because it takes into account all the marinade. I have no way of guessing how much of the marinade actually ends up in the chicken.