It's Greek To Me!

Once in awhile we love to do a Greek theme with our food. It is so tasty and healthy...kebobs with red peppers and onions, a big Greek salad, or maybe some (not so healthy!) spanikopita. I LOVE that but it can be pretty rich. Anyway, here is a nice starter for a Greek dinner. Definitely consider this recipe as more of a guideline. It works as is but is infinitely flexible should you want to use different herbs or skip something or other. Also, if your store has more than one type of feta, try it out in this. Frankly, I could stuff a pita with this stuff and be happy with it as a sandwich!!

Feta Salsa

1/2 lb. feta (cow’s milk)
2/3 cup sundried tomatoes in oil
1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives
2 tablespoons fresh dill
3 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
Crumble the feta into a bowl. Chop the tomatoes and olives, dill and parsley and thinly slice the scallions. Gently mix the ingredients together and drizzle with a few tablespoons of olive oil, or to taste. Delicious served with triangles of fresh pita bread.

Sun-Dried Tomato, Coriander and Roasted Red Pepper Dip

A few days ago I talked about the good qualities of olive oil. Today's recipe is a delicious dip, which can ALSO be used as a sandwich spread on a hoagie or to top a juicy grilled burger. Once you assemble your ingredients, this takes less than 15 minutes to make. This recipe utilizes olive oil, and has the healthy qualities of red peppers, cumin, coriander and jalapenos. It has the healthy olive oil but low fat cream cheese , and well, I could just eat this with a spoon! I am also excited to make this recipe this summer, because I am growing my own coriander (cilantro). The dip does have a bit of a kick to it, but I always get compliments when it is served!
Sun-Dried Tomato, Coriander, and Roasted Red Pepper Dip

Ingredients

2 7 oz jars roasted red peppers, drained

3 oz sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil

2 garlic cloves, chopped fine

1-1/2 tsp ground cumin

1-2 bottled pickled jalapeno chilies, seeded and minced (use gloves)

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander

1/4 cup chopped scallion

4 oz 1/3 fat cream cheese (Neufchatel cheese), cut into bits and softened

Tortilla chips as an accompaniment
Instructions

In a food processor puree the red peppers, the tomatoes, the garlic, the cumin, the jalapenos, the lemon juice, the coriander, and the scallion until the mixture is smooth, add the cream cheese and salt to taste, and puree the mixture, adding a little more olive oil to thin the dip to the desired consistency and scraping down the side of the bowl occasionally, until it is smooth. Transfer the dip to a serving bowl and serve it with the tortilla chips.

Yield: about 2-1/3 cups.

Fusilli with Sausage, Artichokes and Sun Dried Tomatoes

I was looking for a recipe a few months ago so I could use a package of turkey sausage that I had bought. My search took me here, and I can tell you that my family all loved it. Not only is it good, it is easy, and during the week when time is short, that is what I mostly look for. The melding of all the flavors is amazing, and if you have some left over, it is even better after it has sat overnight!

Last night I went to my NIA exercise class. For those of you who have never heard of it, here is the link http://nianow.com/. It is a combination of various movements, easy on the joints, but quite a workout...and fun! Now if I could only look as graceful as our instructor, I would be happy! But we laugh and enjoy and find peace through movement. It is the one thing I really look forward to doing for myself each week. Anyway, last night, the husband made leftovers for dinner. After having a weekend full of kids and grandkids (who all left yesterday), we had to clean out the fridge from all the littles of this and that. Since I came home later, it worked out great and now the fridge is ready for more!

So tonight it is this fusilli recipe and a nice glass of wine. Hope you enjoy your Tuesday!
Fusilli with Sausage, Artichokes, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

3/4 cup drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, sliced
2 tablespoons of oil reserved 1 pound Italian hot sausages ( I used turkey hot sausage) cut into chunks
2 (8-ounce) packages frozen artichoke hearts (use from the jar and you don’t need this much,
eyeball what you like)
2 large cloves garlic, chopped
1- 3/4 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine
16 ounces fusilli pasta
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan, plus additional for garnish
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
8 ounces water-packed fresh mozzarella, drained and cubed, optional( I sprinkled low-fat shredded over the top when I served and omitted the cubes)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat the oil reserved from the tomatoes in a heavy large frying pan over medium-high heat.
Add the sausages and cook until brown , about 8 minutes.
Transfer the sausage to a bowl.
Add the artichokes and garlic to the same skillet, and saute over medium heat until the garlic is tender, about 2 minutes.
Add the broth, wine, and sun-dried tomatoes. Boil over medium-high heat until the sauce reduces slightly, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Cook the fusilli in boiling water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring often, about 8 minutes.
Drain the pasta (do not rinse).
Add the pasta, sausage, 1/2 cup Parmesan, basil, and parsley to the artichoke mixture.
Toss until the sauce is almost absorbed by the pasta.
Stir in the mozzarella. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Serve, passing the additional Parmesan cheese alongside.