I have always associated salads to the summer. Probably because that’s the season when we eat most of it back home. The ones my family makes are usually pretty simple. They mostly consist of seasonal lettuce leaves combined with tomatoes in the summer. In the winter we often add fresh fennel to it. We always season our salads the same way: extra-virgin olive oil, salt and oregano. Sometimes we also add balsamic vinegar. That’s it.
I don’t mind other dressing either, especially when I eat out. As long as they are not too overpowering. Isn’t the best part of a salad when you can taste every single ingredient of it?
And as much as I do enjoy eating it the way I am used to from home, I am always happy to try different varieties. Like this one. We were eating at a restaurant not too long ago, and we ordered a salad that came with gorgonzola, cranberries and pecans. I remember asking the waiter if he could replace the gorgonzola with a different cheese. And the result was feta!
Once the vacation was over and we got home, I could not forget that incredibly tasty salad! I tried making a similar one. I sticked with the feta, and often replaced the pecans with almonds (you need to try out both though!) Same with the cranberries, that I have replaced once in a while with pomegranate seeds. I love how well the sweet and little sour taste blend with each other.
Since I discovered this recipe I must have eaten the biggest quantities of salads ever! Especially during the winter. And I still can’t get enough of it.
It’s not the typical salad you would find in Southern Europe. I’d describe it more like a cross-cultural salad with Mediterranean flavors.
I hope I could motivate you to try this one out! Once you have, you will immediately understand my excitement :)
[yumprint-recipe id=’16’]
felecia says
I love salads. Whoever thinks salads are not meals are wrong. I can eat a salad all by itself. I’ve been making more salad than usual these days (husband is in a work related competition on loosing weight). I have to try that dressing recipe and I’ve never made my own croutons. Must try that too.
mediterranealicious says
Felecia, I totally agree with you! You can add so many things to a salad, that it easily turns into a real meal. And once you make your own croutons you will always think twice before choosing the store-bought ones ;) It takes only a few minutes to make them and they taste so much better. You can also add some chopped garlic or more herbs to the bread! We’ve been eating crazy amounts of this salad, and still can’t get enough of it :) Looking forward to hear how it turned out!