Dec 19, 2010

Get Me to the Greek Nachos!

My mom has been telling me about this nacho recipe she found in Cat Cora's cookbook, "Classics With a Twist" for a few months now. Supposedly she is addicted to them.  I myself have not been in the mood for food of the Greek origins for awhile nor is it easy to convince my husband to eat feta and enjoy it, so I have been procrastinating with this recipe. 
I'm not sure if my mom said she tweaks it all but after looking at the recipe I decided I needed to tweak it just a little so I didn't feel so guilty about inhaling these things. This is the recipe with my optional changes to make it just a teensy bit healthier. We made them last night for dinner and my husband wolfed down just as many as I did (yay!) and didn't complain once about the feta. They are covered in one of his favorite greek olives though, and that red pepper salsa really compliments the flavors. We couldn't eat them all, they were too filling, which was my goal when making the slight changes to it. The results were an awesome recipe and leftovers to reheat for dinner the next day. If you have any leftovers, just take cold toppings (olives, tomatoes, salsa) and store them separately until you heat them up again. I could not find pitted Castel Vetrano olives so I had to pit them myself, but it didn't take too long. 
You may be inclined to double up on the salsa recipe, next time we make these I will. 

GREEK NACHOS

Makes 6-8 Servings
"These nachos have a lot more flavor than the standard, restaurant-style nachos, thanks to olives, garlic, herbs, and roasted red peppers. You can use fresh peppers that you roast yourself or use jarred roasted peppers. Keep the salsa chunky or blend it with the yogurt so it is smooth and creamy (see Twist It)."

Roasted red pepper salsa

  • 1/2 cup strips of roasted red pepper from a jar (or 1 large red pepper, roasted)
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • Pinch of kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano leaves
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
Nachos

  • 2 6-ounce bags whole wheat pita chips (or 10 cups homemade whole wheat chips)
  • 2 cups shredded low-fat monterey jack cheese
  • 8 ounces (1 cup) mild feta, crumbled
  • 1/2 cup thinly sliced pepperoncini
  • 1 cup canned white beans (such as Northern, Canellini, or Butter), rinsed and drained
  • 1/2 cup Green Greek olives, (Castel Vetrano), pitted and sliced
  • 1/4 cup kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
  • 1/2 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup fat-free Greek-style yogurt
To make the salsa: Cut the red peppers into a medium dice and mix in a bowl with the garlic, salt, andoregano. Stir in the olive oil. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to meld the flavors.
To make the nachos: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Spread the pita chips in a single layer on a baking sheet or a large heatproof platter. Sprinkle both cheeses evenly over the chips. Scatter the pepperoncini and beans over the cheese. Bake just until the cheese is melted, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and scatter olives and cherry tomato quarters over the top. Spoon some of the red pepper salsa on the nachos and dab on small dollops of Greek yogurt. Place the remaining salsa in a serving bowl. Serve the nachos right away with the remaining salsa on the side for dipping.

Notes

Jarred peppers are great and require much less time from the cook. You can keep them in your pantry and whip up this salsa in about a minute and a half.
TWIST IT
Smooth salsa: Add the roasted peppers, garlic, salt, and oregano to a food processor and pulse until ingredients are pureed. (You don't need to mince the garlic and oregano; just chop them coarsely.)
With the motor running, pour in the olive oil and process until the mixture is completely smooth. Scrape the puree into a small bowl and mix in the yogurt until blended. Taste and add more salt if necessary. As soon as you pull the warm nachos from the oven, drizzle the sauce over the top.