Chicken Skewer Pitas w/ Cranberry Sauce & Tahini Yogurt

Okay, raise your hand if you're excited that it's Friday!  (Yes, I'm raising both hands just for good measure!) 

What does everyone have planned for the weekend?  Anything exciting?  Well, me... I've got an Open House to go to for the Culinary School that I applied for!  Hopefully can tour the campus and get in on some scholarship action.  So you guys will definitely be informed on Monday!

Anyway, it's supposed to rain for half the weekend, but it's going to be fairly warm, so that's good, right?  Spring is coming, and I couldn't be happier! 

So to keep happy spring thoughts going, I made these Chicken Skewers (although I didn't take them out back to grill them... but they would be perfect for grilling parties!) and thought of the flowers blooming, the warm weather, and how great it will be to have cookouts.

Ingredients:
 Adapted from a Bon Appetit recipe

Tahini Yogurt:

juice from 1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 garlic clove, pressed
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup tahini

Cranberry Sauce - recipe from the Eggnog Pancakes post


1/4 cup pistachios, chopped
small handful fresh Italian parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
juice from 1/2 lemon


Chicken:

1/2 onion, grated
juice from 1 lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 large chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
wooden skewers
pitas, warmed

For the tahini yogurt, in a small bowl, combine the lemon juice, oregano, cinnamon, coriander, cumin, nutmeg, and garlic.  Mix well.  Whisk in yogurt and tahini.  Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

I had some leftover cranberry syrup (that I had frozen) from these Eggnog Pancakes, and thought I'd incorporate it into this savory meal.  The original recipe called for a pomegranate relish, and not being able to find any pomegranates, I just decided to improvise a little bit.  So in a small bowl, combine the thawed out cranberry syrup, chopped pistachios, parsley, olive oil, and lemon juice.  Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

For the chicken, in a large bowl, combine the onion, lemon juice, olive oil, oregano, cinnamon, coriander, cumin, and nutmeg.  Sprinkle chicken pieces with salt and pepper and add to marinade mixture.  Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge for about 2 hours.

30 minutes before the chicken is done marinating, place your wooden skewers in some water to soak (so they won't burn up under the broiler/grill).

Turn broiler to high (alternatively, you could fire up your grill under medium high heat) and place your rack about 6 inches from broiler (2nd highest notch for me). Thread the chicken pieces on the skewers (about 4 or 5 pieces per skewer) and place on a baking sheet.  Broil chicken in oven for about 5-6 minutes on each side.

When chicken is cooked, let rest just for a minute or two and then assemble your pitas with the tahini yogurt and cranberry sauce.

This would definitely win over at a cookout!  The chicken is absolutely moist and flavorful!  I was a little worried that the cranberry sauce would be a tad to overbearing or sweet, but it actually accompanied the chicken and yogurt very well!  Give it a shot, your guests will be amazed by the flavor and beauty of this dish! 

Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!

East Meets West Shrimp

I must admit, I've been a pretty awful non-practicing Catholic this Lenten season. I didn't give anything up. I've eaten meat on practically every Friday. But seriously... that's exactly why I'm non-practicing. Too many rules. To many things to abide by. Do this. Don't do that. What does it all matter? Why does there have to be a certain "holiday" or time for us to give something up or eat something else. Why can't we just do what we want to do... within legal parameters, of course. I've never been one that's been a fan of being told what to do and when to do it... so it's no surprise that I fall into this anti-Lent category. But for those of you who do celebrate, and want a good seafood/meat-less dish for the last Friday of lent, these shrimps were pretty much awesome.

Ingredients:
(Stuffed Peppers adapted from Food & Wine's March 2010 issue "Shrimp-Stuffed Peppers")

about 20 Large Shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails left on.
salt and fresh pepper
2/3 cup Monterey Jack cheese
1/3 cup cotija cheese, grated/shredded
1 scallion, thinly sliced
1 small handful chopped cilantro
6 Cubanelle peppers
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
Fresh salsa
Mango-Teriyaki marinade

For the West part, we're going to do marinated shrimp skewers. Take about 14 of the shrimp and marinate them in your marinade of choice. It'd help if it's Asian themed, to fit with the West-ness, so I found a great marinade bottle at Whole Foods of Mango-Teriyaki. Let marinate for about an hour.

For the East part, we're gonna make some shrimp-stuffed peppers. Heat your grill under medium heat.

Cut a slit down the Cubanelle peppers, length-wise, but not all the way through. Then cut a horizontal slit on each of the ends of the length-wise slit. Kind of like a really wide letter H. Place the peppers on the grill and get a nice char on them, about 10-15 minutes. Remove from grill and let cool until you can handle them.

Meanwhile, mix the cheeses, cilantro, and scallion in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper.

Season the insides of the cooled peppers with a little salt and pepper and stuff with cheese mixture.

In a large skillet, add oil and heat under medium high heat. Add garlic and remaining shrimp. Cook until shrimp start to curl and turn pink, about 2-4 minutes. Stuff the shrimp in the peppers along with the cheese, letting the tails stick out.

Heat the peppers on the grill for about 5-10 minutes, or until cheese mixture is melted.

To finish the marinated shrimp, place 3-4 shrimp onto bamboo skewers and grill for about 3-5 minutes on each side.

Top the stuffed peppers with fresh salsa and lightly top marinated shrimp with Sriracha, if desired!

This was great. I think the two different ways of doing the shrimp really complimented eachother. It was the first time this year we got to use our grill and that is always a sure sign of better weather, and better/great food to come! Enjoy!