GREEK TZATZIKI & CHIA FUSILLI PASTA SALAD πŸ“· FOOD PHOTO SHOOT πŸ“·steemCreated with Sketch.

in food β€’Β  8 years agoΒ  (edited)

Hey Steemians!! How about a little Greek salad today?

As of yet, I have not been to Greece. It's on the list, how about you?

I thoroughly enjoy the flavors of Greece.

This is actually the second time I've tried to post this salad. My first attempt, the photos turned out horrible. I don't know if you have noticed, but I am rather particular about my photos. Have you noticed?

On a side note, it's good to see #steem up a bit after the hard fork. I think this is very encouraging and shows that the heavy hands are not running for the doors. To me, that's a very good thing.

Back to the pasta: I recommend this salad cold, however it can certainly be eaten warm, no problem

A few months ago, my Mom was invited to a woman's get together of all Chileans. She was the only gringa there. And she took a pasta salad. It was a simple pasta salad, again served best cold. She gave it to the hostess of the gathering and they could not figure out what to do with it. They just could not bring themselves to eat it cold. Some at least took a bite, but the hostess wouldn't even try it. That pretty much sums of the food situation in Chile, boring and not will to try something new.

The pictures as most often, speak for themselves.

RECIPE

Ingredients

Ztatziki:
1/2 cup greek yogurt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 mayonnaise
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary leaves
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 large cucumber, quartered
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh dill
salt and black pepper to taste

Salad:
400g (14oz) chia fusilli pasta (or regular)
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 small red onion, diced
2 medium (ripe) avocados, pitted and cubed
1 large tomato, diced
2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
2/3 cup cubed mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup pitted green olives
2 tablespoons fresh mint leaves, chopped
sea salt freshly cracked black pepper to taste

Instructions

Combine all ingredients for ztatziki in a blender or food processor and pulse until nearly smooth but not quite. Pour into a bowl or container and place in fridge until ready for it.
Bring about 5 cups of water to a boil over high heat in a medium pot and add the pasta. Cook for 7 to 8 minutes (a little less if using regular noodles) until just al dente. You want the noodles to still have enough bite left so that they won't get soggy when they absorb the liquid in the salad. Pour into a mesh strainer to drain and rinse in very cold water to stop the cooking, then pour into a large bowl.
Add the salad ingredients and the ztatziki to the pasta and gently toss to combine. Chill salad in refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving. Alternatively you can heat it up and serve it warm if you prefer.

ALL CONTENT IS MINE AND ORIGINAL! All of these food photos were taken with my Nikon D5300 and my favorite Lens, the Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G. Most every time, I cross post on my personal blog which you can find in my INTRO POST.

ENJOY




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Wow, awesome. I really love your posts. Looks so delicious!

Thanks so much @tarekadam. I am very glad you liked it! STEEM ON!!

That's my kind of salad.

So glad you liked it!

oh-my-God, you are realy amazing, @gringalicious

Thanks so much @witchcraftblog

i do cold pasta salads or cold rice salads - taste great with cold meats and pickles - they don't know what they are missing out on. This would be lovely with a nice cold glass of white vino !
Great pictures and presentation

You are absolutely correct, they do not know what they are missing!

Β  Β· Β 8 years agoΒ 

Looks great! One of my favourites is Greek salad so this is a nice twist. Yes I have noticed that you are particular about your photos and your followers wouldn't have it any other way!

@kus-knee (The Old Dog)

Very kind words, @kus-knee. Glad I was able to present something that caught your eye. STEEM ON!!

Now you are lining up with your own season, lol. This looks like a nice light summery salad. It's hard to understand folks that won't even try a new food. I'm sure your mom's salad was great. More for you all, then! ; )

Yeah, definitely closer to my season. It is so hard to post festive holiday posts when it is Spring here, soon to be Summer. Thanks so much for noticing!

You are just like the people that record Christmas music in the summertime, so their albums are ready for the holidays. At least you get to celebrate twice! :

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I wonder how this salad tastes like? It looks awesome!

I think it tasted great, but I am a little biased. Thanks for taking the time to comment

Try feeding the brazilians some salad and you'll get a weird look,no one will touch it.I havent tried a warm Greek salad in London so i dont know about it being eaten hot.Will have to ask our Greek colleagues about that.
Sometimes I think your food preparations look better than the taste ;) It's called envy amiga gringalicious lolzz

Super kind words and super thoughtful comment! Maybe here and there, my pics turn out better than the taste, but don't tell anybody,..SSSHHHH! STEEM ON!!

So right! Steem away!

Β  Β· Β 8 years agoΒ 

Wow, Tzatziki with mayonnaise? That is something really new for me. Part of my family is Greek and we never ever prepared tzatziki with this ingredient. To be honest, most of the ingredients are not 'tzatzikian'. You got me interested to find out how it tastes. It is pretty difficult to beat traditional Greek tzatziki, but I am really keen into trying yours recipe. :) Thanks for sharing :)

When you're in Chile, (and many other places for that matter) you have to improvise. Sorry I strayed from the pure way.

Β  Β· Β 8 years agoΒ 

Oh, no no no, it is absolutely fine! I am just so used to original tzatziki recipe. I have tried yours recipe today. The taste is so unusual, heavier and richer than the original recipe. It actually tastes absolutely amazing with meat (kebab type). DE-LI-CIOUS!!! <3

That's awesome. I am so glad it turned out well for you