The BEST Tzatziki Sauce

First off, let me just say: "yes, I know this picture is terrible." I was making this to take to my family's house on a dark winter day. I couldn't find any good light in the house to save my life. Next time I make this I'll be sure to replace the picture. ANYWHO...
I LOVE Greek flavors, especially that lovely cucumber sauce that no one knows how to pronounce correctly. I have made a few of these in the past from different recipes and I have to say that this is my absolute favorite!

1 (32 oz.) container of plain yogurt, drained- Don't use fat free!
2 cucumbers, peeled and seeded
3 cloves garlic, crushed (I use my microplane)
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp dried dill
Salt and pepper to taste

RECIPE:
Strain yogurt over a bowl, using either some cheesecloth or line a strainer with a coffee filter. Strain for several hours or overnight. In a pinch I have only strained for 2 hours and it worked out just fine.

Prepare your cucumbers by pealing and then seeding them. To seed: slice in half, along the length of the cucumbers, and then run a spoon down the middle and dig the seeds out. After the cucumbers have been pealed and seeded shred with a cheese grater and then place the shredded cucumbers in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze to get rid of as much of the moisture as possible.

Crush your garlic cloves or use a microplane.

Mix together all of the strained yogurt, cucumbers, garlic, vinegar and lemon juice. Salt and pepper to taste. Then, refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Serve with toasted pita bread ( gyro and souvloki recipes to come. YUM)

Source: Tide and Thyme

Classic Italian Lasagna - A.K.A Best Lasagna EVER

Holy cow, I found this recipe a couple years ago on the fabulous Mel's Kitchen Cafe website and it completely rocked my world. I have made it several times since finding it. I bring it to every friend that has a new baby because it's an amazing dish that provides to-die-for leftovers. I have also frozen this dish uncooked to bake for an easy weeknight dinner. Basically, what I'm trying to say is: this recipe is a keeper!

The recipe has two sauces that make the lasagna so creamy and rich. It's a must, it will make tons of dishes to clean but in the end it will be totally worth it.

INGREDIENTS:
Red Sauce:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 large onion, diced
2 - 8 oz. cans tomato sauce
1- 6oz. can tomato paste
1 - 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

White Sauce:
3 cups milk (not skim, I used 1%)
5 tbsp flour
4 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

1 box of lasagna noodles, boiled for half the time on the box. (Mel uses no-boil noodles, Barilla brand)
1 pound ground sausage, I use 1/2 pound mild, 1/2 pound hot
1 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded
8 oz. parmesan cheese, shredded

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and lightly grease 9X13 pan.

In a large skillet, fully cook the sausage breaking into small pieces. Drain the grease and set aside.

Red Sauce:
In a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat add 2 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp butter.  When the butter/oil mixture is hot add the garlic, stirring constantly. When the garlic is lightly browned, but not burned, add the onion.  Continue cooking veggies until they are soft and browned and the fluid has mostly cooked out. Remove from heat and toss into a blender, food processor or using a stick blender and blend the veggies until they form a paste. Return the veggies to the saucepan and add the tomato sauce, paste and diced tomatoes. Then season with salt, pepper and italian seasoning. Cover and let sauce simmer for 30 minutes. Right before using the red sauce in the lasagna stir in the reserved fully cooked sausage.

While red sauce is simmering cook the lasagna noodles. Only cook them for 1/2 the time listed on the box. Run the noodles under cool water when they are finished cooking. Coat with a tiny bit of olive oil and set aside.

White Sauce:
Melt four tablespoons butter. When the butter is melted add the flour, stirring constantly to combine the mixture. Let cook for a minute or two. Next, slowly add the milk, whisking constantly. Add the salt and pepper. Continue slowly stirring the white sauce, ensuring it doesn't burn. Cook for about 5-7 minutes and the sauce with thicken quite a bit. Mel adds a pinch of mozzarella for good luck and SO DO I!

The hard part is now over! Begin layering! On the bottom of the greased pan spread a little red sauce and layer your noodles across the entire bottom of the pan. Then, layer red sauce, white sauce, parmesan and mozzarella. Do this for 3 layers and then pop in the oven 30 minutes!

Notes:  This recipe actually calls for ground turkey instead of sausage but I wanted to add a little heat to the dish. I have also used beef, and half beef half sausage. All have turned out great.

I have also added sliced black olives to this and it adds a great layer of flavor; only problem is my husband doesn't like olives. Sometimes we put olives on one half just for me.

I personally love second day lasagna better than first. ...weird I know.

FOR FREEZING:
I made this for a friend who had recently become a new mom. She had the terrible experience of having to get her gallbladder removed a week after her sweet boy was born. So instead of bringing it over ready to eat I brought it over frozen for when her diet was back to normal.  So, baking instructions for freezing goes as follows: Bake covered and frozen at 350 degrees for 1 hour 15 minutes, then bake uncovered for the next 45 minutes.
**make sure you don't put a frozen GLASS pan into a hot oven that is a recipe for disaster. Your pan will break. I put my lasagna in the oven and then turn it on so that the oven and the pan heat up together**

Recipe: Slightly adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Dad's BBQ Chicken Thighs

This recipe is one that I learned from my Dad. Since then I have added a few of my own touches but the technique of cooking the chicken is simple, delicious and all his. Not only is this recipe super tasty it's also cheap! Chicken thighs (skin on - bone in) are usually around  $0.99 per pound!

INGREDIENTS:
1 package of chicken thighs (Bone in - Skin on is very important to the flavor of the meat)
1 yellow onion
3 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
a few sprigs of fresh rosemary or 1/4 tsp dried rosemary
Olive oil  or cooking spray to coat the aluminum foil
1/4 to 1/2 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce

DIRECTIONS:
First, clean your chicken. This is by far the worst part of the entire recipe. Trim off all the skin and fat that you can - be sure to look on the bone side of the chicken there are a couple pockets of fat to be found. Next, rough chop the garlic cloves and slice the onions.

Preheat your grill to approx. 300 - 350 degrees Fahrenheit

Pull out two sheets heavy duty aluminum foil and lay them on top of each other, make sure that it is long enough to be folded over you chicken with ample room to roll at the top and sides, creating three seams. Spray the foil with oil or cooking spray and lay down a small bed of onions and garlic. Place the chicken on the bed of onions and garlic and season with pepper, thyme and rosemary. Spread the remaining onions and garlic over the chicken and fold the foil into a bag - be sure that the bag won't leak while cooking.

Place foil bag directly onto the grill, close lid and let cook for one hour.

After an hour check the chicken by unrolling the top seam of the foil bag. The juices should be clear and the chicken should be fully cooked. Turn the grill up to 400 - 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Pour chicken juices from the foil bag and into a large bowl, being careful to strain the onion, garlic and herbs. Mix the chicken juice with your favorite BBQ sauce and combine. Next, take the chicken thighs and put them in the bowl filled with combined sauce. Coat the chicken and place on the grill, bone down,  to add a little crunch. At this point I usually stand at the grill basting with sauce and flipping chicken. This only takes about 5 - 10 minutes depending on your desired level of crunchiness. Then TAH DAH! Amazing BBQ chicken.

NOTES:
Even though boneless skinless chicken is easier it is very important to get bone in - skin on chicken. It adds a ton of flavor to the meat.

IMPORTANT: DO NOT ADD SALT WHEN COOKING THE MEAT. This will dry it out considerably.

If you want extra juice to mix with your sauce you can add some chicken broth to the foil bag while it's cooking.

Try to save some of that delicious sauce for leftovers. (yes, you can save it because the chicken juice was already 100% cooked when mixed with the BBQ sauce. Score!)

Recipe: Adapted from Dad

Grilled Pizzas

I've already shown how to make grilled pizza crusts and a delicious creamy garlic alfredo . Well, here is a great way to use these recipes. PIZZA!!!

When I make the creamy garlic alfredo I always freeze a portion of it so I can use it later for pizzas. First follow the recipe for grilled pizza crusts, then pick out your favorite(s) kind of sauce(s). Then prep all of your toppings. Slap them all together, put the pizza on the grill to get it warm and melty and you've got a delicious meal! Here are a list of toppings and pizzas we make/use at our house.

These are our favorite combos:

Grilled Chicken Pesto Pizza

store bought pesto (sometimes I mix it with the alfredo to make it creamy)

chicken

sun dried tomatoes

chopped onions

fresh parsley or basil (both!)

mozzarella

parmesan

Garlic Chicken Pizza

creamy garlic alfredo sauce

chicken

roma tomatoes

green onions

mozzarella

parmesan

Garlic Jalapeno & Pineapple - - - This is one of my personal favorites.

creamy garlic alfredo sauce

jalapenos

caned pineapple tidbits

mozzarella

Mediterranean Pizza

sauce: olive oil and minced garlic

fresh spinach

sun dried tomatoes

mozzarella

parmesan

light Italian seasoning over the top

   - you can add chicken if you like

Hawaiin
marinara sauce or garlic sauce
diced ham
pineapple
mozzarella

Toppings:

pepperoni

chicken (seasoned with pepper, olive oil, Lawyr's, Italian seasoning)

Italian sausage

ground beef

ham

bacon

onions

bell peppers

jalapenos

green olives

black olives

pineapple

roma tomatoes

sun dried tomatoes

spinach

fresh herbs: parsley, basil, rosemary



Creamy Garlic Alfredo

This is another wonderful recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe. This sauce is a quick and easy with a big flavorful payoff. I use it on pasta and also as sauce for pizzas. It's delicious.

INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsp butter
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
4 oz. cream cheese, softened (you can use lowfat or regular)
1 cup milk (I use 1%)
3 oz. parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp salt, to taste

DIRECTIONS:
In a medium pot melt the butter over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly, take care not to let the garlic burn. Add the cream cheese, stirring with a whisk until the mixture is smooth. It will look curdled at first, but with constant whisking for 2-3 minutes, it should come together to form a smooth, creamy paste. Add the milk gradually, 1/4 cup at a time. whisking quickly and constantly until each addition is incorporated fully into the sauce. Stir in parmesan cheese, pepper and salt. Stir until the cheese is melted and the sauce is desired consistency. Cook 2-3 minutes for a thicker sauce or remove right after cheese is incorporated fully for a thinner sauce. Serve immediately over hot cooked noodles.

NOTE:
This is important... don't burn your garlic. yuck, the second time I made this sauce I accidentally overcooked my garlic, bummer. However, I have made it succesfully many times since then. A good trick is to have everything measured out and ready by your pot.

Don't skimp on the 3 oz. of cheese. It's needed and it packs a ton of flavor.

This sauce makes about 2 cups. I use only 1 cup for just my husband and I and freeze the other half and save if for pizza sauce on our grilled pizzas.

Recipe: Directly from Mel's Kitchen Cafe