Fattoush Salad with Crispy Pita & Creamy Lemon Dressing

A fresh and crunchy salad made with toasted pita chips, tomato, cucumber, lettuce, red onion, and feta cheese

I had dinner at Lucques in L.A. the other week and it reminded me of how great Suzanne Goin's cooking is. I have her A.O.C. cookbook at home and her recipe for fattoush salad has been on my list of recipes to make. Fattoush is a Middle Eastern salad that combines pita bread and fresh vegetables, although there are a lot of variations out there. This version reminds me a lot of my favorite Greek salads but with the addition of crunchy pita bread croutons. The whole salad gets tossed with a creamy lemon dressing and salty feta cheese for some richness and tang. It's the perfect thing to make in the summer when cherry tomatoes are ripe and sweet, cucumbers are at their peak, and you want something light and refreshing to eat.

Note: You can substitute the Persian cucumbers for one English cucumber and the little gems lettuce for chopped romaine lettuce. I also left off a handful of torn mint leaves that was included in the original recipe.


Related Recipes:
- Greek Salad with Grilled Shrimp
- Whole Wheat Garlic Pita Chips
- Green Salad with Crispy Quinoa & Pomegranate


Fattoush Salad with Crispy Pita & Creamy Lemon Dressing:
For Dressing

• Smash and peel 1 garlic clove. Add a pinch of kosher salt and use the side of your knife to mash the garlic into a paste.
• Add the garlic, a large pinch of salt, a pinch of pepper, and 2 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice to a small bowl.
• Slowly whisk in 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, then 1/2 tbsp. heavy cream. Check for seasoning.

For Salad

• Preheat the oven to 400F.
• Tear 3 pita breads into 1" pieces and toss with 1/4 c. olive oil and a pinch of salt.
• Arrange the pita in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake, stirring once or twice, for 15 minutes, or until crisp and brown. Let cool.
• Meanwhile, halve 1 pint of cherry tomatoes, thinly slice 1 small red onion, thinly slice 3 Persian cucumbers, and chop 1/4 c. of fresh parsley.
• Wash and dry 3-4 heads of little gem lettuce and pull apart the leaves, tearing larger ones in half.
• Place all the ingredients and 2 oz. crumbled feta cheese in a large salad bowl and toss with the dressing, making sure that everything is well dressed and that the dressing is really massaged into the pita and lettuce.
• Sprinkle another 2 oz. crumbled feta cheese and 1/4 fresh parsley leaves over the top and serve.

Serves two-three (entree)

Serves four-six (side dish)