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glennapritzlaff

Sometimes, you just crave a giant salad for dinner. A good salad has got to be vibrant, fresh, and textural. This one has everything: salty creamy potatoes, crunchy red peppers, sweet corn, creamy yet bouncy Halloumi cheese, and a zingy balsamic drizzle. It’s really good. We had it for dinner last night and it was such a substantial meal despite being vegetarian.


I wish my daughter hadn’t come into the kitchen and annihilated the remaining Halloumi because I want to eat it again right now.


This salad takes a little extra time because you need to roast the potatoes and grill the Halloumi but it’s well worth it.



What you need:


3 large gold potatoes, cubed into 1 inch pieces

zest of one lemon

1 garlic cloves

1 tsp dried oregano

6-8 oz Halloumi, cut similar size to the potatoes

8 oz crunchy mixed greens

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

2 ears of grilled corn, corn sliced off the cob (frozen corn will work in a pinch but I seem to always have corn leftovers this time of year)

a few green olives, quartered

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

about 1/4 cup of olive oil + 1-2 tbsp extra

2 -3 tbsp balsamic reduction

salt and pepper


Begin by preheating the oven to 425°. Place chopped potatoes on a baking sheet and pour over 1/4 cup of olive oil. It’s a lot but the potatoes will soak it up. Sprinkle over some freshly ground salt and pepper. Don’t be shy with the salt. Now grate the zest of a lemon over the top and then grate the garlic clove as well. Add oregano. Stir everything well to combine. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the potatoes are lightly browned and pierce easily with a fork.


Meanwhile, prepare the rest of the salad. When the potatoes are cooked add them to a serving bowl. Keep the baking pan and do not clean it, put the Halloumi pieces right on the baking sheet that should still have some olive oil and seasoning on it. Add a little extra olive oil to the top of the cheese. Stir and place under the broiler for 2 minutes, stir and place back in for 1 more minute. Watch so the cheese does not burn. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly. The cheese will be melty but still held together.




Add all of the lettuce, tomatoes, olives, and corn to the serving dish with the potatoes. Pour the cheese and pan oil onto the salad. Use a rubber spatula to try and get all the yummy garlic oil from the pan. Drizzle over some balsamic reduction. Toss the salad and enjoy.



**most stores carry some variation of Balsamic Reduction in a 8-9 oz bottle. It might appear pricey but a little goes a long way. One bottle usually lasts me the entire summer. Alessi or 365 are good brands.

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glennapritzlaff

This heat wave is out of control which makes using the oven a terrible option and its almost too hot to even stand outdoors and grill. Pan frying chicken is such a quick and simple way to serve chicken and it always has amazing flavor. When you pound chicken breasts into thin pieces it takes less than 10 minutes to cook and it won’t heat up your entire kitchen.


Fresh tomatoes are finally here! My garden is bursting with so many different varieties of cherry tomatoes. I planted a few new plants and then volunteers from last year sprang up, so I’ll be adding tomatoes to everything for the next two months.


This recipe serves 4 people but will be easy to adapt for larger groups.

What you need:


Two large chicken breasts, cut in half and pounded thin. Smaller pieces cook faster, you don’t need to cut them in half but it will take longer. Here’s some good instructions for how to do this: https://www.thekitchn.com/how-and-when-to-pound-chicken-breast-the-easiest-smartest-method-248169


1/4 cup of olive oil and 1/4 cup of vegetable or canola oil

1 cup of Italian bread crumbs

1 tsp of Italian seasoning

2 eggs

4 slices of mozzarella (optional)


1 cup of mixed cherry tomatoes, halved

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

Salt and pepper


1/4 cup loosely packed julienned fresh basil (thinly sliced basil)


Begin by pounding the chicken breasts thin and giving a light dusting of salt and pepper. Meanwhile, beat two eggs together and pour onto a dinner plate. I think its easier to coat the chicken with the egg on a plate versus in a bowl. Stir in one tsp of Italian seasoning. On another dinner plate, spread out the breadcrumbs. Meanwhile, heat the oil together in a large skillet and warm over medium heat. You can use one oil exclusively but I find olive oil alone to be over powering and it also burns quicker than vegetable oil. Combining the two is a nice flavor combination and gives you a little more wiggle room on the heat.


When the oil is hot (but definitely not smoking…should see an occasional bubble) dip the chicken one at a time in the egg mixture followed by the bread crumbs. Make sure to coat the chicken breast entirely with the crumbs. Slowly add the chicken to the hot oil with a pair of tongs. You can repeat and fit in 2-3 at a time depending on the size of the pan. Do not overcrowd it. Once you have placed the chicken in the skillet, do not move it for at least 4 minutes. Gently lift the side of one breast and see if its golden brown. If it is gently, turn it and cook for another 4 minutes. They should take a maximum of 5 minutes per side, minimum of 3 minutes. Once the chicken is golden brown on both sides, remove from the oil and place on paper towels to remove excess oil. Sprinkle with some more salt immediately after removing from the heat. This is crucial. Set aside.


If you would like to add cheese (why not?) place the cooked chicken on a baking pan and layer with mozzarella. A quick 2 minutes under the broiler should melt the cheese without over cooking the chicken. If you need to keep the chicken warm while preparing other foods, simply place in the oven at the lowest setting until you are ready to eat or save the broiling part for just before serving. On a hot day, this chicken tastes excellent at room temperature.


For the topping, combine tomatoes, oil, and vinegar with freshly ground salt and pepper and half the basil in a bowl. Serve over top of the chicken and add remaining basil as garnish to each slice. We served this with a side of sautéed zucchini, corn, onions, and peppers and the whole meal was perfect.

Enjoy!



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glennapritzlaff

We ate tzatziki every single day on our trip and learned how to make it from our hotel chef in Kefalonia. The kids became completely addicted and I’m all for it, it’s so healthy. It’s also cold, tangy, and refreshing. You can put it on just about everything, we’ve been putting it on bread, using it as a dip, and slathering it on grilled meats and veggies. As we were told, you can never have enough salt or olive oil, don’t skimp!


What you need:


1 cucumber

1 cup 2%-5% fat Greek yogurt, no fat free that’s just sad

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

2-3 tbsp red wine vinegar

1 clove of garlic

pinch of dried or fresh dill, added to taste

salt


Begin by grating the cucumber on a box grater and straining over a colander. You want to squeeze out as much water as possible. Add the shredded cucumber to the colander and add a pinch of salt and pour over a tsp of red wine vinegar. Then squeeze/press out as much moisture as you can.



I actually like to drink the cucumber water after it’s strained, it’s really good for you!

If you really like garlic, you can add raw garlic to the bowl. Grate or finely chop it and mix it with the yogurt. If you prefer a more mellow garlic flavor, heat the olive oil in a small pan until it gently bubbles over low heat and add the garlic to the pan. Gently heat the garlic for 15-20 minutes stirring so that the garlic doesn’t burn, then discard the garlic and use the garlic flavored oil.


Combine yogurt, shredded cucumber, olive oil, and another healthy pinch of salt. Mix in about a tablespoon of red wine vinegar. Add dill to your

liking and taste. Let sit for an hour so that the flavors meld together. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Enjoy for the next several days. Yum!!



**Ive been making with raw garlic and the garlic oil, can’t decide which one I like better. They are both good! You could probably use a 1/2 tsp of garlic powder in a pinch and that would be good too.



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