What's for Dinner? Leftovers turned Gyro-ish

I never had anything Greek as a kid. I barely had Italian or Mexican. We had 1940's and 50s Americana. I cook very little of what I had growing up. It was plain, nourishing, and very meat and potatoes. Literally, meat and potatoes. We didn't have a lot of money, we grew most of the vegetables and fruits we ate, we canned all summer long and had a root cellar. And I don't mean a Michigan basement. We had a separate root cellar that my family hand dug for canned goods and potatoes, squash etc. It was a mound in our side yard and grandma and grandpa covered it in creeping flox so in the summer it was all pinks and purples.

I think the first time I ever had anything Greek was in my teens and a friend and I drove to Chicago. We went tot he diner where my mom worked. It was a Greek diner. You know the kind, where the menu was a bound book and you could order 748 different things. I didn't have hummus until I was in my twenties. I don't even think I had heard of chickpeas until I was married. Now I buy them by the Costco case. Today, gyro are one of my favorite foods. I don't make a lot of Greek food at home, and I live in a very unGreek area. Detroit has Greektown which has awesome food. I make Baklava and a few other desserts, and Pastitsio, the yummy pasta dish baked with bechamel. I have Greek cookbooks... I should dig one of those out today, on yet another snow day this winter.

Last night I made an ish dinner--Gyro-ish. I warmed up leftover chicken (the -Ish part) and gluten free pita, made hummus, and plated it all with salad, pickled beets and feta.

For the Gyro portion of our -ish I warmed up the half of the chicken I set aside when I made the Chicken Apple Bacon Skillet, before I added the apples and other ingredients. There was no leftover bacon, there never is.

I did not have any Greek yogurt (I usually have everything), or cucumber for that matter (what is wrong with me?!) So I busted out the Ranch --We ARE Midwesterners after all--and used that and feta on the salad portion, plus the Salad sprinkles that I make. I can put the recipe for those in soon. I added a side of pickled beets, and a scoop of hummus. And there you are--Build your own Gyro-ish!

Hummus

Hummus is a very simple, healthy dip you can easily make at home. There are thousands of varieties, ok maybe only hundreds, it all depends on what you like and what flavors you add. You can add a variety of herbs, sweeteners, vegetables like roasted red peppers, and even cocoa. You can top it with a splash of olive oil, flavored or plain, with spices for added flavor, or even a blend like Dukkah. The world is your oyster! What does that even mean??

Make small batches, there are no preservatives so unless you have a big family or are throwing a party, this is so quick and easy small batches are better for less waste.

This is also an -ISH recipe

**1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed. you can also use dried, soaked, cooked garbanzo beans.

2-3 T Tahini this is a sesame seed paste that most grocery stores now carry, usually in the "world foods" aisle

1 tsp lemon juice, fresh is best, but lets face it, we all have some sort of squeeze bottle in the fridge for when our lemon, well, no longer looks lemony

1/4 tsp salt

1 small clove garlic, peeled

Put all in a food processor and let it go! It will be chunky and thick at first. Scrape the sides of the bowl and start it again. Slowly start adding Olive oil, and it will start to loosen. Stop it and scrape the bowl again, looking at how thick and smooth the hummus. If you need to whir it up again, if you need to add more olive oil etc, it is now a judgment call on how you like it.

When it is finished, transfer it to a bowl and top it with your favorite herb, spice, spice mix or olive oil. This is one of our favorite go to's, not just at home, but camping as well. when we have snack time, a big tray of fruit and vegetables, crackers and hummus goes in the center of the picnic table. Now I have Snackleboxes--game on snack world!

**There is a division in the hummus world---peel your garbanzos or don't people your garbanzos...the rift is great and people take sides like they are rooting for their favorite sports team. If you are on Team Unpeeled, just rinse the chickpeas and throw them in the food processor. Team Peel, while judging you, says you can easily peel the beans by rinsing them and pouring them into a towel, rubbing off the peels.(like when you take the skins off hazelnuts) It takes a minute or two, but people swear it makes a smoother hummus.

Whichever team you decide to be on, the point is that you make it. Maybe both ways to see who is actually right! It's not the perfection, it is the doing! li