Katy.com Recipes

"What a treat to be able to travel to Greece, even though there were none of my ancestors in any of the local cemeteries. (As many of you know I always do my genealogical research to see if I have dead ancestors in the places we travel.) It appears that there may have been a trace of middle eastern history but not enough to trace on 23 and Me. Even with this devastating news, I relished the opportunity to visit Greece and Turkey to experience the food and culture. We arrived into Athens before a 9 day cruise. Since Mark is a history buff, it was important to schedule visits to the ruins and museums. In addition, we needed to meet my goals of trying authentic Greek and Middle Eastern cuisine. He had a wonderful plan to meet our needs, scheduling tours through Viator Tours. One of our tours was a city food tour and the other a cultural and lunch tour. We were introduced to the Horiatiki Salad at the Teoedeoc in Athens, Monastiraki. The food was very nice but service was certainly lacking. We were served this lovely, fresh salad before some amazing chicken gyros. As we toured the food stalls and vendors throughout Athens, we were in awe of the beautiful produce. The tomatoes were such a brilliant red and the English cucumbers were so fresh. Everyone in our tour group commented on the intense colors of the vegetables. There were some beautiful sliced red onions mixed in with the other vegetables. I like the flavor of red onion but to diminish the sometimes harsh taste, you can soak the sliced onion in ice water and a tablespoon of red wine vinegar for a few minutes and then drain completely. We were also educated on the importance of a good Feta cheese. The true Greek feta is noticeably different to many of the feta cheeses we can get in the states. For this recipe, it would be beneficial if you can find a Mediterranean market and purchase a good quality Greek feta cheese. You won’t be disappointed. This salad is perfect for those warm summer days. With some lovely vine ripen tomatoes, it will fill the bill for a weeknight dinner alongside a loaf of crusty bread on olive oil. I like to make the salad dressing and set aside while I cut up the vegetables. This gives the dressing a chance to meld. Whisk before pouring over each individual salad."