I have been playing around with the idea of a food blog for quite sometime now, but until recently I haven't really done much with it. It's called
Platepix and it's mostly an outlet for Tom and I to share our love of food, cooking, and photography. It's a work in progress, but I still thought it would be nice to share a recent post...
Crispy romaine, thick slices of veggies, and feta cheese topped with a garlic and lemon dressing.
We
eat salad almost everyday in our home, so it's important to have
variety. This Turkish Salad recipe comes from one of my very first
cookbooks that I purchased when I moved in with Tom. I was new to
cooking in general, so of course I was attracted to the notion of a
fancy dish that didn't involve a flame. The crispy romaine lettuce and
the thick slices of pepper and onion hold up well against the intense
dressing made out of lemon juice and chopped garlic. The tang of the
lemon and the spice of the garlic, combined with salty feta cheese and
olives, makes this dish irresistibly munchy.
Recipe serves 4:
1 Head of romaine
1 Green and 1 red bell pepper
1/2 Cucumber
4 Tomatoes
1 Red onion
8 oz feta cheese
Black olives for garnishing
Dressing:
3 Tbs olive oil
3 Tbs lemon juice
1 Crushed garlic clove
1 Tbs chopped parsley
1 Tbs chopped mint
Salt and pepper to taste
This
is obviously a lot of veggies, so I usually cut this recipe in half. It
makes enough for me and Tom to really pig-out on, and sometimes we
might have a little left over.
Simply put, chop the
romaine and place it in a pretty serving bowl. Chop all of the veggies
into thick slices, keeping them just small enough to eat in one bite
without having to use a knife. Arrange them evenly around the bed of
lettuce. Next, crumble up the feta and sprinkle it on top of the salad.
Slice some large, black Kalamata olives in half, removing the pits if
they aren't already pitted, and add them to the mix. For the dressing,
just whisk the chopped garlic, parsley, and mint in with the fresh lemon
juice and olive oil. Wait to top the salad with your homemade dressing
until just before serving. If you top the salad too early, the garlic
can infuse the veggies with an intense bite. All that's left to do is
add the salt and pepper to taste, and then serve it up!
This
salad is great paired with homemade hummus and pita bread. It's makes a
nice, light meal that's full of healthful ingredients like garlic,
olive oil, lemon juice, and of course raw vegetables. I've found that it
pairs well with a witbier (white beer) such as Hoegaarden. The
refreshing citrus usually found in witbier is a good accompaniment to
the lemon in the dressing.
Photo from:
Platepix
