Greek Spinach Salad with Grilled Turkey Tips

Greek spinach salad with grilled Marinated turkey tips. The turkey tips are marinated in a garlicky lemon vinaigrette with delicious herbs and are served atop a healthy spinach salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, bell peppers, crumbled feta and Kalamata olives. Everything is dressed with a classic Greek vinaigrette.

Almost any kind of salad can be easily transformed into a substantial satisfying dinner by adding protein. Greek salad has so much going for it already – salty feta and olives, crunchy cucumbers, juicy tomatoes, and a delicious vinaigrette. Adding lemony, garlicky, marinated grilled turkey tips takes it to even higher heights, and guarantees it will satisfy everyone in the household…even those who don’t consider a salad to be dinner (my kids for example).

A classic Greek salad, or Horiatiki doesn’t include salad greens, but I decided to break with tradition. Spinach leaves are a perfect vehicle for soaking up the delicious vinaigrette and capturing bits of onion and cheese with every bite. It also adds to the enjoyment of dinner when you know that you’re eating one of the world’s healthiest vegetables.

Turkey tips are made from turkey tenderloins. Slice them in half lengthwise and then crosswise, and you have the perfect size and shape for topping a salad. The ones I found were pretty large – about 3/4 pound each – so two tips per salad felt just right. If you can’t find turkey tips, you can substitute chicken breasts.

The recipe goes like this: Whisk up the marinade and pour it over the turkey tips. While the turkey is soaking up all the delicious flavors of lemon, garlic and herbs, prepare the vinaigrette and pour half of it over the vegetables to marinate them. Just before dinner, grill the turkey tips; dress and plate the spinach; top with vegetables, turkey tips, olives and feta cheese.

This is a flexible salad. Go with the freshest and most beautiful produce you can find.  If there are no large tomatoes at the market that are ripe and ready, use cherry or grape tomatoes.

Here are more delicious dinner salads that are healthy and hearty enough to make everyone in my house happy. Hopefully yours too!

Classic Salad Niçoise Salad

Fusion Salmon Niçoise Salad

Asian Cabbage Salad with Grilled Chicken and Shiitake Mushrooms

Thai Steak and Noodle Salad

Grilled Zucchini Caprese Salad

And for the non meat eaters, try this tasty vegetarian Greek dinner salad from Cooking Light.

Here’s the recipe for Greek Spinach Salad with Grilled Turkey Tips. I hope if you try this recipe you’ll come back and leave a comment and let me know what you think.

Greek Spinach Salad with Grilled Turkey Tips

A healthy, hearty dinner salad with spinach, crunchy fresh vegetables, olives, cheese and grilled marinated turkey tips.

• Author: Panning The Globe
• Prep Time: 45 mins
• Cook Time: 10 mins
• Total Time: 55 mins
• Yield: 6
• Category: Main Dish, lunch or dinner
• Cuisine: Greek

Ingredients

• Turkey Tips and Marinade:
• 2 1/2 pounds turkey tenderloins
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano (or 1 tablespoon dried)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• For the Vinaigrette:
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 medium cloves)
• 2 teaspoons fresh minced oregano leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried oregano)
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• For the Salad:
• 12 ounces spinach leaves
• 1 hothouse cucumber, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
• 1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed, thinly sliced
• 3 ripe tomatoes, sliced into wedges (or substitute a pint of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved)
• 1 cup of Kalamata olives or about 30 olives (pitted or whole – your preference)
• 8 ounce piece of Feta cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Instructions

1. Marinate the Turkey Tips: Whisk all the marinade ingredients in a large non-reactive bowl. Add the turkey tips and toss to coat. Marinate, covered in the fridge, for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.
2. Make the Vinaigrette and Toss with Vegetables: Whisk all vinaigrette ingredients except oil: vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Slowly pour in oil while whisking constantly, to emulsify. Place cucumber, onion, peppers and tomatoes in a bowl. Pour half the vinaigrette over them and toss gently to coat. Let the vegetables marinate for 20-30 minutes.
3. Grill the Turkey and Assemble the salad Preheat the grill to medium-high. Grill the turkey tips for about 5 minutes per side or until cooked through. Toss the spinach with the remaining vinaigrette and divide it among 6 plates. Add the marinated vegetables with any remaining vinaigrette, cubed feta, olives and turkey tips. Season with salt and fresh pepper, to taste.