Tomato Salad With Fried Feta

Last night I had a few friends & cousins over for a backyard party but the weather Gods were not compliant. It was my birthday this past Friday and I'm a fabulous 41!

Rain was forecast for most of the day and we packed up and headed indoors...twice!

Regardless, after settling indoors I was able to commence the onslaught of dishes to my awaiting guests.

I served up a combo of dishes that were sure people pleasers and with just enough uniqueness to evoke the "Ooooohs & Ahhhhs" from the dining room.

One such dish is a tomato salad on a bed of greens with fried feta. This time I used a Mesclun Mix of greens, some firm Greek feta cheese, a mildly sweetened vinaigrette made with honey and extra-virgin Greek olive oil.

Frying cheese can be a tricky task but here's a few of pointers:

• Seek a firmer feta cheese. Some crumble easier than others. A firmer variety works best.
• Chill your feta before frying. My good friend Sam of Greek Food - Recipes & Reflections shared this tip and it definitely helped my feta cubes keep their form during the frying.
• Shallow fry your cheese in a non-stick pan with an oil like sunflower oil.
• Coat your cheese simply with beated egg and flour.

This salad immediately catches the eye, my Greek guests were in awe of the Greek cubes of feta and when I was prepping the next course in the kitchen, I thought I heard them meditating with what sounded like a chorus of "Ohmmmmmmmm" - it was really a "Yummmmm"!

Tomato Salad With Fried Feta
Serves 4

Vinaigrette
juice of 1 lemon (1/4 cup)
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. of honey
2 tsp. dried Greek oregano splash of good balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. black pepper

1-2 ripe tomatoes, sliced
4 large handfuls of Mesclun (Spring) mix
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
Greek black olives
7oz/200 gr. Greek feta, cut into cubes
1 egg + splash of milk
some all-purpose flour
sunflower oil for frying

1. In a small Mason jar, add your vinaigrette ingredients and close lid and shake well. Taste and adjust seasonings and set aside.
2. Prepare the salad by arranging the tomatoes, onion, Mesclun mix and olives on individual plates or one large serving platter
3. Cut the feta cheese into cubes. Beat the egg and some milk in one bowl and have another separate bowl set up with some flour. Toss the cheese first in the egg, shale off excess and then dredge in flour. Place your dredged feta cubes in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to chill.
4. Heat the sunflower oil in a large, non-stick pan and fry (in batches) over medium heat, turning over the cubes of cheese until they are golden brown on all sides.
5. Scatter the fried feta over the salad and give your jar of vinaigrette a shake and spoon over the salad. Serve while feta cubes are still warm.
   

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