This serves 4-6 as a side salad.
The Dressing:
I found many similar recipes so I used one from this website for the dressing. This is the recipe as shown but I reduced the amount of olive oil. I don't really understand the purpose of soaking the ground sumac; some recipes called for that technique but many did not. I recommend doubling this recipe if you are making enough salad for 4-6 servings.
2 tsp ground sumac, soaked in 2 tsp warm water
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (I used a wee bit more, just had one juicy lemon)
1 Tbsp pomegranate molasses (optional, I used half of this)
1 garlic clove, crushed (I minced it)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (I used a bit less)
Kosher salt
Put all ingredients into a small mason jar and shake together. Set aside.
Some versions did not include toasting the bread first. But usually "bread salads" are a way of using up stale bread so that being the case, toasting would not be required. I had fresh pita bread, so I baked it for a crunchier texture.
Drizzle olive oil onto two pieces of pita. Sprinkle with sumac and kosher salt. Rub it in to ensure the pita are evenly covered. Bake at 350 degrees F until crisp and browned.
The Salad:
Well, this can be just about anything you want, but lebanese cuisine often uses a lot of parsley, so don't forget that! Here is what I used:
1 large bunch romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
1/2 field cucumber, diced
Cherry tomatoes, halved
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup parsley, chopped (I really prefer flat-leaf but couldn't find any so curly works OK)
1/4 cup mint, chopped
Combine salad ingredients in a large bowl. Break up the pita into pieces and crumble over salad, toss with dressing.
Although I intentionally baked the pita to crisp it a bit, I actually like to add the dressing a few minutes before eating to let it get a teeny bit soggy. It's just better that way ...
This sounds great. Will try it. Have the ingredients but just never got around to using the pomegranate molasses.
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