Chicken Kabobs with Cucumber Salsa

I think the grill can be a girl's best friend, okay, I should not exclude all you men out there, but I feel women tend to fear the grill. I know tackling the grilling basics can seem daunting at first. You may fear overcooking or burning your meat, leaving you with a dry, flavorless, and crunchy result. Even for those of you who have never used a grill, this chicken kabob recipe can wipe away all any of those fears. By marinating the chicken, the end result is moist, flavorful, and tender; simply keeping you wanting to eat more.

This dish is great for a quick meal, a large party or even a light lunch. You can also add your favorite herbs to the marinade, like rosemary or thyme, to personalize the dish. Whether you are a first time griller or a grilling expert this is a great recipe to close out the summer grilling season.

Ingredients: 

-2 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1

inch chunks

-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

-1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

-3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

-3/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt, divided

-1 lemon, juice and zest, divided

-1 large cucumber, peeled and roughly chopped

-1/4 pound (about 1 cup) crumbled feta cheese

-1/3 cup finely diced red onion

-1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine chicken, garlic, pepper, 2 tablespoons oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and all but 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and toss to coat. Marinate at least 20 minutes, but I usually tend to do this in the early afternoon or morning and let them sit in the fridge for several hours. The longer they sit the more flavorful they become.

2. Take the cucumber and dice into small pieces. Place in a bowl and stir in feta, onion, parsley, lemon zest, remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice, remaining 1 tablespoon oil and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cover and refrigerate while meat is cooking. Bring it to room temperature before serving with the chicken.

3. Prepare grill by turning it onto medium-high heat. Now slide chicken onto a metal or well-soaked wood skewers (you need these wood skewers to be soaked, so that they do not burn during the grilling process) and grill until browned about 3-4 minutes and flip the kabob over to other side cooking for 3-4 more minutes, about 6 to 8 minutes total. 

4. You can choose to serve these on the skewer or remove the meat to serve in a dish. Top with the cucumber salsa and enjoy!

The Perfect Turkey Burger

I cannot believe these words are even about to pass my lips, but here goes nothing (dramatic pause), "This turkey burger is ridiculously delicious!". I cannot emphasize this enough...it's ridiculous! I will boldly and proudly state that I will chose a turkey burger, well this turkey burger, over any beef patty you could throw my way. These turkey burgers have so much flavor. The flavor profile is complex; there are many different flavors hitting you as you continue to bite into the moist burger (Yes, I said moist!). Food rarely surprises me and I usually know what to expect before even tasting something, so I cannot say enough about how floored I was after biting into this burger.

This picture (or should I say poor representation of amazingness) was not even taken until after I took a bite. I did not think I would be finishing it, let alone even consider blogging about it! I was expecting an "ugh.." reaction, a couple of forced bites by myself, and as last dish effort to continue eating the poor excuse of a burger whipping out the ketchup and drowning said burger until edible. I was speechless after the first bite. I whipped out my camera instead of the ketchup, shot a single picture and continued to inhale the rest of the burger. In the past, I had always viewed turkey burgers as bland, low-fat, healthy versions of the 'real' thing (aka beef), but this was not the case and these were all myths or at the very least mere excuses for bad burger making. I had to share my secret, as well as see the reactions of others, of this amazing discovery! Turkey can truly hold its own in the burger war against beef any day, you just have to have the right person making it or maybe just the right recipe!

(Adapted from food network magazine)


Ingredients:

• 1 large portobello mushroom cap, stem removed (food processed)
• 1/4 medium white onion chopped
• 3 tablespoons lightly packed fresh parsley
• 1 - 1.25 lbs ground turkey
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 8-12 slices white cheddar cheese
• Garnish with mayo, caramelized onions, avocado and white cheddar (may I add that a little bit of ketchup and dill relish would not hurt anything either)

Directions:

Roughly chop the portobello, white onion, and parsley and pulse in a food processor using the steel blade. Add the olive oil, Worcestershire, salt, pepper, and turkey meat. Pulse just until combined. Do not over-mix!

Divide into 4 (I made 6) balls, then lightly press into 4-inch-wide, 1-inch-thick patties. Put on a large plate, cover and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes. FIRMING is vital!

Preheat a grill to medium. Brush the grates with olive oil. Grill the patties, undisturbed, until marked on the bottom, 4 to 5 minutes. Give the patties a quarter turn and cook until marked again, 4 to 5 more minutes. Flip the patties and grill until cooked through, 6 to 7 more minutes; top each with 2 slices cheese during the last 3 minutes of cooking and cover with a disposable aluminum pan to melt.

(I used a 400 degree oven and a saute pan lightly coated in olive oil. Undisturbed I cooked the burger for 10 minutes a side, twenty minutes total. At the 20 minute mark I placed caramelized onions and cheese over each burger and melted the cheese over the onions and burger for 2 minutes in the oven.)

Serve with desired garnishments and a warm bun. And most importantly prepare to ENJOY!!!