Greek Salad with Lemon and Oregano

Now you know me: if I am going to post about a salad, it has to be special.  I am not a big salad person.  Vegetables, yes.  But something about salads does not appeal to me.  I can't really put my finger on why, but I just don't really like salads... except I loved this one.  And so did everyone else.  The dressing is so simple and yet delicious.  And any salad with kalamata olives in it is okay by me.

I was making falafel for dinner, and I decided to have a whole Greek-themed meal (just wait till you see my next post and try out the dessert!).  I googled "Greek salad" and saw lots of options, but this one jumped out at me because of the lemon and fresh oregano.  Plus the pictures were just to die for.  Smitten Kitchen is a great blog!

My mom helped me with this salad, since I was working on the falafel and the tzatziki.  And of course, she had to change it up by adding some lettuce.  I do have to confess, though, that the lettuce was a great addition.  It made the salad have some more heft to it.  I recommend adding it.

What really makes it amazing though is not just the feta, or the olives.  It is really the dressing, which is so simple, it's crazy: mix lemon juice, olive oil, and oregano.  BOOM.  You're done.  I know it doesn't sound like much, but it is just the perfect touch of lemon on every bite.  I actually used a few shakes of dried oregano since I didn't have fresh, but I can only imagine how much more amazing it can be!  The whole salad is so fresh, crunchy, bright, and delicious.  Have you ever heard me rave about a salad!?  Me either.  So believe me that it's just that good, and make it.


Recipe:

Greek salad with lemon and oregano

from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:

1/2 a large seedless cucumber, chopped
1/2 a green pepper, chopped
1 cup (about 6 ounces) cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup kalamata olives
1/4 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 lemon, halved
2 to 3 ounces feta cheese, thickly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 sprig oregano, leaves minced (a few shakes of dried is okay too!)

Instructions:

1) Toss cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, olives, and onions in a shallow bowl or deep plate.

2) Squeeze half a lemon over it.  Arrange feta slices on top.

3) Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and oregano.