Grilled Chicken w/ Cucumber Relish & Yogurt Sauce

I think we're all in agreement that this winter was by far the lamest of all time. I suppose it was nice to not have to dig my car out of a seemingly endless mound of snow, or worry about crashing on the way to work every day.... But it didn't feel like the season even existed and I didn't make it to the slopes once!

Now that it's April and I'm completely over it and ready for warmer weather, of course we get snow! I guess that's New England, for ya. Well, needless to say I was in desperate need of some freshness and a hint of Spring and this totally hit the spot. Tender, juicy grilled chicken topped with a bright cucumber relish with fresh tomatoes, served with a dollop of cucumber dill yogurt sauce.....

The flavors all together are so light and refreshing that it brought a bit of Spring to a dreary April day. It would be the perfect meal to have sitting outdoors on a hot night.... Paired with a nice cocktail or beer, of course! You could stuff this all in a pita for lunch as well.

If you want to spice it up a bit, the relish would be nice with a pinch of red pepper flakes for a kick. Feel free to use the yogurt sauce as a salad dressing or dip for veggies!

Fingers crossed that a sunny Spring is on it's way!





Grilled Chicken w/ Cucumber Relish & Yogurt Sauce

Ingredients:
1 lb chicken breasts or thighs
1/2 cup Italian dressing
2 tsp Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper
Yogurt sauce:
1 cup non-fat, plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup minced cucumbers
1 tbsp dill
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
Relish:
1/2 cup chopped cucumber
1/2 cup seeded & chopped tomato
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp minced garlic
Rep pepper flakes, optional

Directions:

• Marinate chicken in Italian dressing for a few hours or overnight. 
• Shake off excess dressing and season with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Grill until cooked through. 
• To make the yogurt sauce, mix all ingredients together and season with salt and pepper to taste.  
• To make the relish, mix all ingredients together and season to taste.
• Serve chicken with relish and sauce.

*Recipe adapted from www.dinneratthezoo.com

Avocado Cream Sauce/Dressing

I apologize in advance for those of you that thoroughly enjoy my posts about bacon mac n' cheese and peanut butter s'mores bars and homemade Snickers because the next few weeks are going to be some tree-hugging, earthy crunchy recipes due to this crazy candida diet. It's all good stuff though!!

Weirdly enough, the hardest part to me about this diet is the "no vinegar" rule. I can deal without processed foods because I eat that stuff minimally anyways. The vinegar is exceptionally hard because it means no BBQ sauce, ketchup, mustard, hot sauce, salad dressing or basically any condiment..... All things that make the healthy stuff taste better!

I made this avocado cream sauce to go with fajitas (except subbed lemon for lime) to fill that void in my life and fell in love with it. I got great reviews from a number of eager taste testers, as well. Since then, I've been dipping veggies in it (raw and roasted), using it as a salad dressing and sauce for cooked meat (chicken, steak and scallops at this point). It has all been so good.

Dip your fries in it! Spread it on a sandwich! Use instead of mayo! It's so versatile, healthy and delicious.

The tangy-ness of the yogurt and creaminess of the avocado meet gloriously in the middle for a perfect ratio. You get the hint of avocado and freshness of lemon with a tiny kick from cayenne and it pairs well with just about anything you put it on.

I'm so thankful for this recipe because I was starting to have serious condiment withdrawals! My next plan is to mix in some fresh dill and other seasonings to create a guilt free ranch. I suppose this diet won't be too bad after all..... A lot of work but some good fun, too!




Avocado Cream Sauce/Dressing

Ingredients:
1 avocado
1/2 cup plain, unsweetened, nonfat yogurt (regular or Greek, organic is ideal)
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp garlic powder
Salt, pepper and cayenne to taste

Directions:

• Place all ingredients together in food processor and pulse until smooth. Adjust ingredients to your flavor preference.