Parmesan Crusted Chicken with a Greek Twist

I first made this recipe when my sister in law was visiting from Greece.  We were both watching the TV commercial about the Hellman's Parmesan crusted chicken and thought we should try it.  The first time I made it I downloaded the recipe from the Hellman's website.  It turned out good, but not the way I would have liked it.  I had to put some Greek flair in it.  So I made it again and added my own Greek twist. The original recipe only has  4 ingredients in it: the chicken, the Parmesan, the bread crumbs, and the mayo.  I substituted the Parmesan cheese with fresh grated Romano cheese, added grey poupon and lemon juice, plain bread crumbs on some of the chicken breasts and gluten free breadcrumbs at another, since my daughter is on a gluten free diet.  It's any easy dish to make and goes well with rice and a spinach/romaine salad on the side.  Enjoy!

Makes 6 servings (appr. 6 oz. each)

1/4 cup  Hellman's Mayonnaise made with Canola oil

2 oz. Romano cheese

1 3/4 lbs. boneless chicken breasts (about 4 chicken breasts)

4 tsp. bread crumbs

1 tbsp. grey poupon mustard

1 tbsp. lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix the mayo with the mustard and lemon juice; sprinkle with salt and pepper and mix well.  Spread it over the chicken breasts.  Top with the bread crumbs, the shredded cheese and bake at 425 degree oven for ½ hour till chicken is done.  (The mayonnaise topping keeps the chicken nice and moist and not dry).

Note: you can mix the shredded cheese with the mayonnaise mixture.  I skipped that step and sprinkled the cheese on top the breadcrumbs.  Either way it tastes good. 

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 serving (158.3 g)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 357

Calories from Fat 172

Total Fat 19.1g

Saturated Fat 5.7g

Cholesterol 131mg

Sodium 359mg

Total Carbohydrates 1.5g

Dietary Fiber 0.1g

Sugars 0.2g

Protein 41.5g

Greek Tomato Salad - Horiatiki Salata

Greek Tomato salad-Horiatiki Salata (pronounced haw-reah-tiki  sah-lah-tah) with feta cheese

 Here is my version of the Greek Tomato Salad.  This the traditional Greek tomato salad that I grew up with.  There are many variations of the salad here in the US and in Greece.  Different areas have their version of the "Horiatiki Salata".  This is a very simple salad if you need something quick to go with your dinner.    But if you prefer you may garnish it with one or two Greek Kalamatta olives (like some restaurants do in Greece) or chopped parsley, and substitute the scallions with red onion.  Enjoy!

Makes 8 servings

2 large tomatoes

½ cucumber (you can use either English or regular cucumbers)

2 scallions

8 oz feta cheese

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ tsp dried oregano

Cut the tomatoes into wedges.  Clean and slice the cucumber and scallions. Cube or slice the feta cheese. Sprinkle with olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper to taste.  Toss  and serve.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 103 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 142

Calories from Fat 112

Total Fat 12.4g

Saturated Fat 5.1g

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 25mg

Sodium 319mg

Total Carbohydrates 4.0g

Dietary Fiber 0.7g

Sugars 2.4g

Protein 4.6g

Grilled Vegetables in Balsamic vinaigrette

Here is a nice side dish for the summer.  Serve along any type of grilled meat.  

Makes 8 servings (approx. 7 oz each serving)

4 cups eggplant

3 cups squash

2 cups zucchini

2 cups red onion

1 cup parsley

3/4 cup olive oil

1/2 cup dill

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Wash the vegetables, and peel the skin into stripes.  Cut them into 2" pieces.  Place them in a large pan.  Wash and chop the parsley and the dill.  Toss with the rest of the veggies and marinate them with the balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Refrigerate. When ready to grill, put them in aluminum foil boats and grill for about 20 min till veggies are tender. 

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 serving (182.4 g)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 237

Calories from Fat 194

Total Fat 21.6g

Saturated Fat 2.9g

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 0mg

Sodium 162mg

Total Carbohydrates 11.2g

Dietary Fiber 3.9g

Sugars 3.5g

Protein 2.9g

Marinated in the balsamic vinegraitte

Wrapped in foil ready for the grill

After they are grilled.  

Enjoy!

Lentil Soup

While I was growing up in Greece, my mother prepared meatless dishes during the week and made dishes with chicken, pork or beef tenderloin on a Sunday. Sunday was a special meal. The whole family looked forward to it. We all gathered around the table, to enjoy any type of meat with some kind of vegetable or starch, that my mother had prepared (like the roasted chicken with potatoes - Roasted Chicken with Potatoes in the oven) one of my first posts. Living in the US, I’m trying to incorporate that same principle that my mother had, by trying to cook meatless dishes during the week, and enjoying meat on a Sunday. Sometimes I accomplish that, but other times it’s quite difficult.

Lentil soup is a common dish to prepare during Lent. This year, Greek Easter falls on May 5th thus our Lent period is still on. It began on March 18th and it will last till our Easter Sunday which is seven weeks from March 18th. Our Easter follows the Julian calendar and should not coincide with Easter of other faiths. During Lent, strict food restrictions apply. According to our Greek Orthodox customs, meat, fish or poultry is forbidden to eat (except crustaceans) even dairy and olive oil. The only two days that we are allowed to eat fish is March 25th (Fried Cod in Beer Batter) when we celebrate our Greek Independence Day and the Annunciation of Virgin Mary (or Evangelismos of Theotokos - pronounced: E-van-geh-lee-zmos of Thee-ott-oh-kos), and on Pam Sunday.

Living away from the Mother country is always difficult to establish these rules. As hard as I try, there are days that I will have to skip the tradition and end up cooking a dish with meat. Lentil soup is easy and fast to make, and since my family likes it, I cook it often during Lent.

Enjoy!!!

Makes 8 servings (approximately 15 oz each or 2 cups per serving)

½ cup olive oil
¾ cup chopped onion
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 ¼ cup sliced carrots
1 lbs green lentils (16 oz)
8 cups water
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
15 oz can tomato sauce
1 tsp salt
½ tsp cumin
2 tbsp chopped parsley
4 bay leaves

Wash the lentils and remove and foreign objects, like tiny rocks that might have escaped into the package. Set aside.

In a Dutch oven, over high heat, pour the ½ cup olive oil. Add the chopped onions and garlic. Sauté till transparent. Add the sliced carrots and the lentils. Add the tomato sauce, the diced tomatoes,salt, cumin, chopped parsley, bay leaves and the 8 cups of water. Let it come to a boil, lower the heat and let it simmer for one hour. Remove from heat. Before serving remove the bay leaves.

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size
15.613 oz (442.6g)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 344
Calories from fat 122
Total Fat 13.5g
Saturated Fat 1.9g
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 596mg
Total Carbohydrates 42.1g
Dietary Fiber 19.4g
Sugars 6.1g
Protein 16.2g