A Tale of Two Greek Salads

It's not often I get into a cooking slump, but that's where I am right now.

I'm not sure if this is due to having cooked everything possible, eaten anything and everything we've been craving or perhaps it's just the in-between-seasons-when-the-weather-isn't-cool-enough-for-heartier-dishes-and-we're-tired-of-summer-food syndrome, but David and I are both feeling extremely uncommitted when it comes to what we should cook and eat right now.

Thankfully, this only happens a few times a year, though when it does, I am determined to find inspiration. So much so I even took two food files with me to Sunday's farmers market hoping for a jump start. I actually schlepped my appetizer file and another one on salads.

Perhaps salads are on my mind because I arrived home Friday night to an amazingly perfect Greek salad David whipped up. The dressing was an unbelievable combination of tangy-tart and I couldn't quit raving about it. Here it is four days later and I'm still bragging on his delectable creation.

Yesterday morning I point blank asked him what he did to make the dressing so sensational and he responded, "Wouldn't you love to know?" I'm not kidding. That's what he said.

So rather than try and recreate his fabulous dinner, I just made a different version of a Greek salad using a creamy feta vinaigrette recipe that was in my salad file. We had plenty of everything I needed in the fridge. And since I'm truly uninspired to cook much more than a salad, this fit the bill.

Always use the best ingredients you can find (and afford).
This is a fab feta and costs less than the mediocre stuff!

I'm hoping you'll love this tangy, easy-to-make dressing as well. Even though it's not David's Greek salad dressing, it's definitely a winner!

Buen provecho!

Creamy Feta Vinaigrette
The Cowgirl Gourmet got this recipe from the June 2009 issue of Food & Wine

Print recipe

This is a dressing you can whip up in the food processor in less than three minutes. And while I am using it for a Greek salad (use your choice of lettuce, some sliced cucumber, tomato, Kalamata olives, pepperoncini peppers and celery), Food & Wine suggested that you could also use it to spoon over grilled vegetables or grilled shrimp or even lamb. Or, how about changing things up a bit and adding it to cucumber salad, spinach salad, tomato salad or even potato salad?

Makes 3/4 cup

3 ounces feta cheese, preferably French, crumbled (3/4 cup)
2 1/2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon dried Greek oregano
1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (evoo)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a food processor, pulse the crumbled feta and the red wine vinegar, water, oregano and olive oil until the vinaigrette is smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

Refrigerate until ready to serve or serve immediately. If the oil separates, just whisk or stir well and everything will come together again.

When the oil separates, as it has above, just stir or whisk
and it will come back together.

This dressing will keep in the fridge up to two weeks, if it lasts that long.