Greek Chicken Tostadas with Whipped Feta.

Food is fun.

Fusion cuisine is my preference- mixing foods and culture in unexpected ways. Once upon a time, BBQ chicken on a pizza was unheard of. What a fabulous idea! These days, we see intriguing combos on most menus. Tacos using lettuce instead of tortillas. Kebabs with grilled poundcake and strawberries. Breakfast for dinner. Candied bacon. Anything goes!

I’m constantly inspired by the incredible food combinations that Jessica comes up with over at How Sweet It Is. This girl is seriously creative in the kitchen and (hilarious to read). Toasted Bacon Flutternutters? Mac n’ Cheese Stuffed Brown Sugar Balsamic Portabellos? Blueberry Pizza with Whipped Ricotta and Caramelized Shallots? Brilliant madness. Not all of Jessica’s recipes are so adventurous, but they all taste amazing.

I spied a delish-sounding recipe for tostadas last week. “Tostada” means toasted in Spanish, and it’s used to refer to a crispy tortilla (usually fried). In Mexican cuisine, tostadas are usually topped with your choice of taco filling, piled onto beans or melted cheese to help keep the goods in place. I grew up eating tostadas, and made some spicy shrimp ones recently. But Jessica’s version had nothing to do with Mexico… these are GREEK tostadas.

John and I have been cutting back on our gluten intake, and this recipe fit the bill. First up, I made a marinade for chicken. I combined olive oil, red wine vinegar, fresh dill and minced garlic, and lemon juice. I seasoned both sides of two chicken breasts generously with salt and pepper, and placed them in a freezer bag. I poured the marinade right in and let the chicken swim in the yumminess in the fridge for a couple of hours.

While the chicken marinated, I got started on the glue: whipped feta. It’s just a combination of feta cheese and a little cream cheese, blended in the food processor until creamy and magical. Mine wasn’t as smooth as Jessica’s looked, so I drizzled in a little bit of olive oil to get that whipped texture. YUM.

John grilled the chicken, basting it with the leftover marinade. He chopped it into small chunks and set it aside while I grilled my tortillas into tostadas.

All that was left was the topping! I chopped up some artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, cherry tomatoes, white onion, and more dill and combined them in a bowl. I stirred in some olive oil, lemon juice, and crumbled feta cheese. A generous seasoning with salt and pepper, and it was go time!

Here’s how I assembled the tostada. First, I smeared the whipped feta all over my crispy tortilla. Then, I added some of the grilled chicken. On top of the chicken went my salad of veggies.

Hello, gorgeous!

I ate my tostada with my hand, biting into it like a piece of pizza. John preferred a knife and fork. The tortilla held up well with all of those tasty fresh toppings, and the chicken was scrumptious.

My only complaint is that the whole dish seemed a tad on the salty side. I know for next time to hold off on seasoning the marinade or veggies- I will let the feta, olives, and artichokes provide the salt. I also think I’ll add cucumber for extra crunch!

These Greek tostadas got me thinking about other types of tostadas. Asian, topped with wasabi cream and Ahi tuna! Italian, topped with herbed ricotta, sliced meatballs and marinara! The possibilities are making me hungry…

Food is fun.

What’s your favorite fusion food? Share with me!

Greek Tostadas (thank you, How Sweet It Is)

You’ll need:

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh dill
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• the juice of 1 lemon
• 1 batch of whipped feta
• 4 (small) corn or flour tortillas
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 sweet onion, diced
• 1/2 cup chopped, marinated artichokes
• 1/3 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
• 1 teaspoon freshly chopped dill
• crumbled feta for serving
• lemon wedges

Add chicken to a baking dish or ziplock bag. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, garlic and dill. Pour over chicken, stick in the fridge and let marinate for a couple of hours.

Grill your chicken, basting with marinade. Set aside. In a large bowl, combine tomatoes, onions, artichokes, olives and dill. Add olive oil and lemon juice and toss to coat. Season if desired.

When getting ready to serve, heat another skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil about 1/4 teaspoon at a time, add one tortilla and cook for about 30-60 seconds per side, until just golden and bubbly. Remove and let drain on a paper towel. Set aside until ready to use.

To assemble tostadas, spread a bit of whipped feta on each crisp tortilla. Add chicken on top then cover with the tomato and artichoke mixture. Top with some extra feta. YUM!

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