Greek Salad

A fresh salad always sounds good to me, especially one with crisp, fresh ingredients. I know that many people won't make a salad with tomatoes unless it's summer when the tomatoes are at their best. I very seldom have a problem getting a nice ripe tomato any time of the year. The trick is to take them out of their carton and put them in a nice big bowl on the counter. They're beautiful to have sitting out and they ripen as the days go by. When you're buying tomatoes, try not to buy tomatoes that have been refrigerated and never refrigerate tomatoes because they'll go mealy (mushy). If you buy them, put them out to ripen and if they are still mealy, it's probably because they have been refrigerated either in the store or during the delivery process.

I went to the store this past week and they had beautiful beefsteak tomatoes. They were pretty ripe to start with so I didn't have to wait long. A nice change to a regular salad is a Greek salad, especially when you have nice ripe tomatoes! If you have time, make the salad dressing before the salad so the flavors in the dressing have time to develop.

Greek Salad

1 ripe tomato, cut into wedges
1/2 cucumber, peeled and cubed
1/4 red onion, sliced
1/4 green pepper, cubed
3-4 kalamata olives
1 slice of Feta cheese
1 teaspoon Greek seasoning

On a plate, arrange the tomatoes, green pepper and olives. If you don't have or like kalamata olives, you can leave them out or use regular black olives. Same goes with any of the other ingredients as well. Top with a slice of feta or you can crumble it on top. Sprinkle the dried Greek seasoning over the feta and then add the dressing. Happily serves 1.

Absolutely Fabulous Greek House Dressing (adapted from www.allrecipes.com - Danielle M.)

This dressing is delicious on the salad.

1 cup red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon dried Greek oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil
2 teaspoons pepper
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

In a large container, mix together the red wine vinegar, garlic powder, oregano, basil, pepper, salt, onion powder and Dijon mustard. Pour in the EVOO and mix vigorously until well blended. Store tightly, covered at room temperature.