Grocery shopping sometimes has a way of changing a recipe from one thing to something entirely new. That happens to me all the time. I’ll have a specific idea in my head but after seeing what’s on sale, what’s fresh, or what’s new, soon I’ve got a whole different thing going on.
Or sometimes it completely elevates that original idea into something totally crave-worthy. What started as a simple Greek Salad quickly turned into something much more exciting. Vegetables just kind of jumped off the shelf into the cart… I don’t know how they got there, honest! But with this fresh, colorful salad as the result, I really can’t complain. I call it the Growing Greek Salad because, well, that’s exactly what it is.
During my most recent trip back to NJ, I finally got to share my love of cooking with my best friend, Jordan. We were spending some time with old friends we hadn’t seen in a while and wanted to bring a nice dish to add to the table. Since it was during Passover, we also wanted to make sure it was something we could eat. Naturally, veggies came to mind. We wanted to make a salad, but nothing boring. Greek Salads are always popular but when we stepped into Shop Rite, our salad grew…
We washed, chopped, sliced, and diced a bounty of fresh spinach leaves, mixed greens, cucumbers, red and yellow bell peppers, mushrooms, and artichokes, mixed in chickpeas and Feta, and tossed it with a balsamic vinaigrette to make a gorgeous salad only to be devoured later by four hungry friends rekindling old relationships.
Notice the super cool home decor in the pictures? That is Jordan’s house — she and her mom have such a eclectic sense of style. Love it!
Notice the super cool home decor in the pictures? That is Jordan’s house — she and her mom have such a eclectic sense of style. Love it!
Salads are difficult to write actual recipes for, since the amount really depends on your own liking. So I’m going to list the ingredients and you can do as you please!
The Growing Greek Salad
Baby spinach leaves
Mixed greens
Cucumbers, smaller diced
Red and yellow bell peppers, small diced
Baby Bella mushrooms, sliced
Canned Artichokes packed in olive oil, drained and quartered
Chickpeas, rinsed and drained
Feta cheese
Balsamic Vinaigrette
Mix everything in a big bowl and enjoy!
We had matzoh and hummus on the side, but since it obviously is no longer Passover, I suggest serving the hummus with freshly baked pita bread.
