Beef or Chicken and Veggie Skewers - recipe theme

I originally posted this recipe on Facebook back in 2015 and thought it was a great recipe to wrap up the recipe theme and fulfill my wish to make simple recipes.  Don’t be daunted by the long ingredient list, you can use any vegetables you have in the house.  Even though that are on the way out, all veggies work great on skewers, so use up the rubbery carrots and limp celery and make these tasty skewers and if the weather is good where you are, try them on the outdoor grill, if not roast them in the oven.

The sauce for this is bright and springy with a tangy yogurt-garlic-cucumber combination.  We like to use Greek yogurt because it has a thick enough texture to blend with high-moisture ingredients without becoming too thin.  And they are just as tasty with chicken as they are with beef.

Beef and Veggie Skewers

1/2 cup grated peeled seedless cucumber (or regular cucumber)*
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2 large garlic cloves, minced, divided (or 2 tsp garlic powder)
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint, divided (optional)
3 teaspoons lemon juice, divided

3 teaspoons olive oil, divided

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

1/4 teaspoon pepper, divided

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary

12 oz. stew meat or beef top sirloin steak, cut into 1 1/2-to 2-inch pieces
      If you only have chicken, cut 2 large breasts into 1 ½ inch cubes
4 large cherry tomatoes
1 diagonal cut carrot (optional)
2 wide cut celery ribs

1 green bell pepper, cut into 2-inch pieces
8 (1/2-inch) wedges red onion

Directions:

Grate the cucumber and drain in fine strainer over small bowl, pressing with spatula to extract juices; discard juices. Combine cucumber and yogurt in small bowl. Stir in half of the garlic, 1/2 tablespoon of the mint, 3/4 teaspoon of the lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of the oil, 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and dash of the pepper.

Place beef in shallow dish. Combine remaining minced garlic, 1 tablespoon mint, 2 1/4 teaspoons lemon juice, 2 teaspoons oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper and herbs in small bowl; pour over meat, turning to coat. Refrigerate 30 minutes.

Heat grill. Thread beef onto 2 (12-inch) metal skewers, separating pieces slightly. Thread vegetables onto 2 (12-inch) metal skewers, beginning and ending with tomatoes. Grill, covered, over medium heat or coals 6 minutes for beef for medium-rare and 10 to 12 minutes for vegetables or until crisp-tender, turning to brown all sides. In the over broil on high for about the same amount of time, turning to brown all sides.

*Seedless cucumbers, also called hothouse or English cucumbers, are thinner and longer than regular cucumbers. They're sold wrapped in plastic.

RECIPE THEME

Each month a theme is chosen and a number of recipes on that theme from my massive archive will be shared.  This year we have 12 new topics, different from the topics of last year.  To find the recipes of last year, check out this recipe link or search the blog with the topic Recipe2018, or Recipe2019 

You can search the monthly theme by looking for the theme keyword in the search box and it will pull up the recipes on that theme as posted, so look at the bottom of the recipe in each posting for the KEYWORD in the () to search for each  month.  All recipes this year will be tagged Recipe2020 so you can find them all.

The themes are:

Feb 2020 - Footbal Tailgate Favorites (AppFeb)

March 2020 - Kabobs (KabobMar)

April 2020 - Brunch (BrunchApr)

May 2020 - Non-Traditional Pizza (PizzaMay)

June 2020 - StirFry Dishes (StirJun)

July 2020 - Salads with no lettuce (SaladJul)

August 2020 - Pickled things (PickleAug)

September 2020 - Quiche (QuicheSep)

October 2020 - Squash Soups (SquashOct)

November 2020 - Pumpkin (again) (PumpNov)

December 2020 - Turkey Recipes (TurkDec)