Greek Night

When I was a child, my parents took my brother and me on a trip through the Greek Islands. Aside from the beautiful scenery and the ancient ruins, my favorite part of the trip was the food. Ever since, my family and I have tried to recreate some of the spectacular dishes we sampled while in Greece. Some came out better than others but there were too many good ones for just one Recipe Corner. Therefore, I will be bringing you a three-part series on Greek food; two appetizers, an entrée, and the most delicious dessert.  
For the appetizers, I had chosen two dishes you are most likely to see when ordering food in a Greek restaurant; an authentic Greek salad (which does not contain lettuce) and a traditional Tzatziki sauce (the sauce of the Greeks). Enjoy!

Greek Salad

1 Cucumber, peeled and sliced

Kalamata Olives, as many as you would like

1 Red Pepper

1 Green Pepper

1 Red Onion, sliced

Tomatoes, I used Cherry tomatoes but the salad often comes with quartered whole tomatoes

Oregano

1 Block of Feta

Extra Virgin Olive Oil, to taste

Kosher salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

Tzatziki

1 Cucumber, peeled and chopped

2 tsp Fresh Dill

2 cloves Garlic, chopped

1 ½ cups Greek yogurt

2 tsp Kosher salt

Black pepper , to taste

1tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

Process

Greek Salad

This one is really easy. Combine all of the ingredients except feta cheese. Cut a rectangle – about ½-1 inch thick – and place on top of the salad. Drizzle some more EVOO on top of the cheese and add another sprinkle of oregano and you are done. Try to have the veggies and cheese at room temperature when serving so all of the good flavors can come out. When you finish eating the salad, the oils at the bottom of the bowl are perfect for dipping bread.

Tzatziki

Peel the cucumber. Cut it in half, hotdog style. De-seed the cucumber with a sharp spoon or something similar. Once all the seeds are removed, chop into smaller pieces and place in a colander. Sprinkle the cucumber with salt and let sit in the colander for about 30 minutes so excess water can be removed from the cucumber.  

Once the cucumbers have sat, dump them in a blender along with the dill, garlic, EVOO, and black pepper. Blend until fully combined. You don’t want big chunks of cucumber so, if there are any left, put the mixture back in the blender for a few more seconds.

Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl and mix in the yogurt. Once fully combined, place in the refrigerator for at least two hours to let the flavors combine. Serve with pita bread, vegetables, or anything else you can think of to dip in there.

Taste Test

The salad was refreshing. All of the fresh ingredients really come together nicely and the oregano is a perfect touch, bringing the salad together.

The Tzatziki’s main flavor is cucumber but it doesn’t overpower the flavors of the dill and garlic. The combination, along with yogurt, melds together wonderfully and makes for a great dipping sauce.

Leftover Quality

The best part of the salad is that it is fresh, so try to eat all of it on the first sitting for maximum enjoyment. Basically, the salad will be good as long as the ingredients are fresh.

The Tzatziki will stay good for a few days. If there is some leftover, which there probably will be, make a gyro for lunch and spread the Tzatziki all over it!