omg yogurt-marinated herbed chicken skewers

Sara sends me links to recipes she'd like me to try and this week the yogurt-marinated herbed chicken skewers we made were simply brilliant. I've read plenty or recipes for marinating chicken in yogurt and you would think with our almost daily consumption of both yogurt and chicken I might have tried one or two. Nope. Perhaps I was just unknowingly waiting for the ultimate in deliciousness when this recipe caught my eye. You need to allow 3 to 6 hours for the marinating, but no more or the chicken will start to break down. Mine were marinated a little over 3 hours and truly the chicken was simply succulent, moist and full of flavor. The herb flavors here are definitely Greek. There is an optional lemon-garlic-basil dressing which is almost redundant, but also truly delicious. I also made Fine Cooking's pita bread on the grill in a cast-iron skillet, some tzatziki with the remainder of the Greek yogurt and some grilled romaine with just olive oil, salt and pepper for a "dressing". I am going to employ this method and adjust the herbs for a more of a Provence or Tuscany bent and I'll let you know how that turns out. Go forth and marinade!

Yogurt-Marinated Herbed Chicken Skewers

1/2 C plain Greek yogurt (I used

Fage 2%)

1/4 C olive oil

2 large cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp dried thyme (yes, I have tons of fresh thyme but dried is better for this recipe)

2 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp cayenne

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp fresh ground pepper

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts or breast tenderloins cut into 1-inch pieces

1 red onion, chopped in 1-inch pieces

2 red/yellow/orange peppers, chopped in 1-inch pieces

Lemon-Garlic Oil Dressing

1/4 C olive oil

2 large garlic cloves, minced

3 T fresh lemon juice

2 T fresh basil

Stir to together yogurt, olive oil, garlic, oregano, thyme, cayenne, salt and pepper until smooth. Pour mixture into 13x9x2 glass or ceramic baking dish (the ones with the plastic lids are

perfect). Place chicken in dish and toss to coat and arrange in a single layer. Cover tightly and refrigerate 3 but not more than 6 hours.

While the chicken marinates whisk together the lemon-garlic oil dressing.

Thread onions, peppers and chicken in an alternating pattern onto metal skewers (or wooden skewers soaked in water). Discard the marinade.

Grill skewers over medium-high heat for 3 minutes per side until chicken is cooked through (10-12 minutes total).

You can brush on the lemon-garlic oil or just serve it on the side.