chicken gyros

guest blog with tricia binder
 
after having my second baby i quickly came to the conclusion that i needed to give my recipe repertoire an overhaul. complicated dinners that took a half hour or more to cook needed to be saved for sundays and weekday meals to feed my hungry toddler and baby had to be ready in twenty minutes flat – ideally ten. quick, simple, & healthy was my new motto and from this evolution came one of my husband’s favorite dishes. fortunately, it’s so fast and easy i never mind making it. so here’s my take on gyros (made with chicken instead of lamb) and a homemade tzatziki sauce that’s a cinch to throw together. from start to finish you’ll need only 15 minutes before this is ready to serve – and enjoy!

chicken gyros

1 pkg flatbread* (a.k.a. pitas – be careful not to buy pita pockets!)
2 – 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
¼ - 1/3 cup greek vinaigrette salad dressing, depending on amount of chicken (e.g. kraft® greek vinaigrette with feta cheese & oregano)
1 small white or yellow onion
1 cucumber, divided
1 3oz container feta cheese
1 tomato, thinly sliced (optional)

preheat an indoor or outdoor grill, adding chicken breasts when the grill is hot. while chicken is grilling, place greek vinaigrette in a small serving bowl and set aside. prepare toppings by first cutting the onion into thin slices and placing on a serving platter. cut 1/3 of the cucumber and set aside for tzatziki. with the remaining cucumber, cut into thin slices and quarter, adding it, tomato slices (if desired) and the feta cheese to the platter, set aside. check chicken, turning if needed.

next, prepare tzatziki sauce by combining all ingredients, mix well. when chicken is done, remove from grill and set aside to rest, cooling slightly. turn grill heat to low and grill pitas for ~30 seconds on each side or until heated through – being careful not to burn. when chicken is cool enough to touch, cut into cubes, add to greek vinaigrette dressing and mix until all pieces are lightly coated. serve with toppings and sauce on delicious grilled pitas.

tzatziki sauce
1 5.3 oz container oikos organic plain greek yogurt
1/3 cucumber peeled, deseeded and finely chopped
1/8 tsp lawry’s® season salt
1/8 tsp dill
1/8 tsp garlic salt
1/8 tsp salt
dash black pepper

*kangaroo brand flatbreads are readily available in the deli section of most grocery stores

cooks note: picky eaters? me too! if you have little ones that won’t go for this, take their pita, add pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, bake and you have a personal pizza in no time! even moms and dads will love using these flatbreads for a tasty ‘za. don’t have that on hand? set aside some chicken before adding the sauce and serve with cucumber slices and fruit or use the pita for a pita-pb&j.

vegetarian? yup, you guessed it … me too. skip the chicken, double up on the cucs and drizzle a little of the dressing on before adding the remaining toppings. delish!