My younger son and his girlfriend are visiting this week from San Francisco. He requested a Greek meal with some of his favorite dishes for dinner last night. Happy to oblige I came up with the following menu.
Greek Salad dressed with an olive oil, red wine vinegar and oregano vinaigrette
Grilled Pita Bread brushed with olive oil, salt, pepper, and oregano, and served with tzatziki (cucumber yogurt) sauce for dipping
Grilled Lamb Chops marinated with herbs, garlic, lemon juice, and olive oil
Roasted Greek Chicken and Potatoes with garlic, lemon, and oregano
Greek Style Green Beans with Tomatoes, and of course, olive oil, garlic, parsley, and oregano
You might ask yourself is there ever such a thing as too much garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and oregano??? The answer…NEVER!
However, when it came to dessert I did digress. I baked my Coconut Layer Cake fulfilling a promise to my son’s girlfriend.
Grilled Lamb Chops (Greek Style)
Place 2 racks of rib lamb chops (8 small chops to each rack) in shallow pan.
Drizzle extra virgin olive oil over the lamb.
Squeeze the juice of 1 large lemon over the lamb.
Smash 6-8 cloves of fresh garlic and place around the lamb.
Roughly chop several stems of fresh rosemary, fresh greek oregano, and fresh mint and scatter over the lamb.
Season liberally with kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
Cover with platsic wrap and refrigerate for several hours.
Allow lamb to get to room temperature before placing on a hot grill (It’s a good idea to wrap the bones with some foil to prevent them from burning).
Grill 5- 8 minutes per side to desired doneness.
Roasted Greek Chicken and Potatoes
Potatoes:
6 medium Russet potatoes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly cracked pepper
1 teaspoon garlic salt
2 teaspoons dried oregano
several cloves of fresh garlic,smashed
several sprigs of fresh Greek oregano
½ cup lemon juice
Chicken:
1- 3 pound fryer chicken
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly cracked pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
¾ teaspoon garlic salt
¼ cup olive oil or melted butter or combination
¼ cup lemon juice
Pare and quarter potatoes lengthwise. Place in bowl and toss with ingredients through ½ cup lemon juice. Let marinate while chicken roasts, mixing often so potatoes don’t brown. Rub inside and outside of chicken with salt, pepper, oregano and garlic salt. Place breast side up in pan and drizzle oil/butter and lemon juice over the bird. Roast uncovered in a preheated 375 degree oven for 15 minutes. Remove from oven. Remove chicken and place potatoes and marinade on the bottom of the pan and put chicken on top.
Continue roasting another 30-45 minutes, basting occasionally until breast is golden brown. When browned on breast side turn back side up and roast uncovered, basting occasionally for another half hour.
Note: You can double the recipe using 2-3 pound chickens or 1- 6 pound chicken, adjusting cooking time accordingly.
Greek Style Green Beans and Tomatoes
½ cup olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed, but left whole
1 large tomato, seeded and chopped
1 -8 ounce can tomato sauce
½ cup water
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons sugar
Kosher Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Heat the oil over medium in a large saute or saucepan.
Add the onion and garlic and saute until wilted and translucent.
Add the green beans and saute, stirring often for 5 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, water, parsley, oregano, sugar, salt and pepper, and stir to combine.
Bring to a boil, reduce to low and simmer covered until green beans are well cooked, 35-45 minutes.
Adjust seasoning and serve.