Food Network Greek Salad

GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, garlic, salt, and oil. Stir in the oregano and pepper to taste. Set aside.
• When ready to serve: In a large bowl lightly toss the lettuce with some of the dressing. Divide the lettuce among 4 salad bowls. Scatter the olives, cheese, cucumber, tomatoes, onion, and peppers over the top of the greens. Serve and pass the remaining dressing at the table.

GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• Combine vegetables, olives, and parsley in a large bowl. Rest sliced feta on the top of salad. Combine oil, vinegar, and oregano in a small plastic container with a lid. Shake vigorously to combine oil and vinegar and pour over salad and cheese. Season with salt and pepper and let the salad marinate until ready to serve. Serve salad with pita bread blistered and warmed on a hot griddle or grill pan.

GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• Place the cucumber, peppers, tomatoes and red onion in a large bowl.
• For the vinaigrette, whisk together the garlic, oregano, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Still whisking, slowly add the olive oil to make an emulsion. Pour the vinaigrette over the vegetables. Add the feta and olives and toss lightly. Set aside for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to blend. Serve at room temperature.

GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• Toss 3 quartered tomatoes, some fresh oregano, 2 tablespoons capers (with 3 tablespoons of the liquid), 1 tablespoon sliced pickled peppers (with 1 tablespoon of the liquid), 3 tablespoons olive oil, and salt and pepper. Toss in watercress, sliced scallions and pitted Greek olives.

CLASSIC GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• Soak the red onion in a bowl of heavily salted ice water, 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, whisk the vinegar, lemon zest and juice, honey, dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl. Whisk in the olive oil in a slow, steady stream until emulsified. Add the tomatoes and olives and toss. Peel the cucumbers, leaving alternating strips of green peel. Trim the ends, halve lengthwise and slice crosswise, about 1/2 inch thick; add to the bowl with the tomatoes. Drain the red onion, add to the bowl and toss. Drain the feta and slice horizontally into 4 even rectangles. Divide the salad among plates. Top with the feta and oregano; drizzle with olive oil and season with pepper. Photograph by Johnny Miller

CLASSIC GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• Combine the vinegar, lemon juice, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste in a small bowl and whisk together. Add the oil in a steady stream, whisking constantly.
• Combine the lettuce, onion, bell pepper, tomato, cucumber, olives and feta in a large salad bowl. Pour the dressing over and toss until all of the ingredients are well coated. Taste and adjust the seasonings, adding more salt or lemon juice as desired.

FRIED FETA GREEK SALAD PITAS

Steps:

• Combine the olives, cucumbers, red pepper and onion in a mixing bowl. Add the lemon juice, olive oil, a big pinch of salt and some black pepper and toss to combine. Allow to marinate in the refrigerator while you make the feta.
• For the feta, prepare a dredging station. In a rimmed dish, add the flour. In a separate rimmed dish, whisk the egg with a splash of water. In a third separate dish, whisk together the breadcrumbs, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few turns of black pepper. Coat each chunk of feta in the flour and tap off the excess. Dunk in the beaten egg and then coat in the breadcrumbs, tapping off the excess.
• Heat a 1/4-inch layer of olive oil in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. (Test to see if it is hot enough by sprinkling a bit of breadcrumb in the oil. If it sizzles right away, it's ready.) Carefully place the breaded feta cubes in the oil and fry in batches for 90 seconds to 2 minutes on the first side, undisturbed. Flip and fry on the other side for another minute or so, or until golden brown. Remove to a cooling rack set over a baking sheet and allow excess oil to drain. Repeat until all pieces are fried.
• To serve, slice open each pita and create a pocket. Schmear a big plop of hummus inside each one, followed by some arugula. Top with a pile of the Greek salad, a few chunks of the warm, fried feta, a dollop of yogurt and a few pieces of mint. Serve with lemon wedges and hot sauce, if desired.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, mix together the water, sugar and yeast just to dissolve. Add the oil and salt and then gradually add the flour. Increase the speed to medium-high and mix for 7 to 10 minutes, adding just enough additional flour so that the dough no longer sticks to the bowl. Do not add too much flour. The dough should be smooth and slightly sticky. Lightly coat a clean large bowl with oil or cooking spray, then place the dough in the bowl and turn it once or twice to coat it in oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise at room temperature for 2 hours, or until it has doubled in size.
• Turn the dough onto a clean work surface and divide it into 8 equal pieces. Mold each piece into a ball by stretching the top and tucking the edges under. Place the balls 1 inch apart on a piece of parchment paper, cover them with plastic wrap and let them rise for 30 minutes.
• Set an oven rack in the middle position. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
• With a rolling pin, roll out the balls of dough into 6-inch circles. Place them on the baking sheets and bake for about 5 minutes, or until they're puffy and just starting to brown.

QUINOA GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• In a saucepan, bring stock to a boil.
• Stir in quinoa.
• Reduce heat to med low and cover.
• Cook 15 minutes, until liquid is absorbed.
• Transfer to a large bowl and cool.
• Stir veggies and cheese into cooled quinoa.
• Whisk together dressing ingredients.
• Pour over quinoa mixture and toss.

GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• Dice up the vegetables- I usually use a small red onion as I don't like it to overpower the salad. You can adjust the vegetables to your tastes.
• Place the vegetables in a bowl along with the olives and feta cheese.
• Mix olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper and pour over the vegetables.
• Usually I let everything sit and marinate in the fridge for approximately 1/2 an hour. This seems to marry the flavours! I like to serve it in a clear serving bowl as the colours are so fresh and appealing.

THE ULTIMATE GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• Whisk dressing ingredients together until blended.
• Season to taste.
• Drain onion from ice water and pat dry with paper towels.
• Combine all salad ingredients, except cheese, in large bowl.
• Toss with dressing.
• Sprinkle cheese over and serve.

INA GARTEN'S GREEK SALAD

Steps:

• Place the cucumber, peppers, tomatoes and red onion in a large bowl.
• For the vinaigrette, whisk together the garlic, oregano, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Still whisking, slowly add the olive oil to make an emulsion.
• Pour the vinaigrette over the vegetables.
• Add the feta and olives and toss lightly.
• Set aside for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to blend. Serve at room temperature.
• Tips from me:
• To reduce the sharpness of the onion, soak the sliced onion in ice cold water for 30 minutes and pat with paper towels to dry, before adding to salad.
• To cut down on prep time, place a single layer of cherry/grape tomatoes between two Tupperware lids (or flat plates, etc.) and slice through all of them at once, using a sharp knife.

GREEK SALAD DRESSING

Steps:

• Mix all ingredients together and shake well to mix.
• Update 6/23/10: For a creamier dressing, add all ingredients except oil to a blender. Pulse several times to mix ingredients. With blender running on high, slowly pour oil into blender until mixture is creamy. Refrigerate.