Mediterranean Salad Plus Tahina Tutorial

This is a sort of Kitchen Sink Salad, meaning use whatever you’ve got and whatever you like.  But don’t leave out the capers!  I always thought I hated capers.  Then in Greece I experienced my first big juicy salty capers and I changed that thinking!  So, if you don’t live here in the Mediterranean, (I’m sorry for you), invest in some good imported ones.

Mediterranean Salad

6 cups salad greens or Romaine lettuce, washed and torn

1 avocado, cubed

2 carrots, grated

1 beet, grated

1 handful sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

2 cucumbers, diced

2 tomatoes, diced

3 T capers

2-3 green onions, chopped

2-3 pickles, your choice what kind

Now, you can just dress the salad with lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper, as we most often do here, OR you can drizzle on some creamy, decadent sesame love sauce….  mmmmmm….

First, Tahina for Beginners.  It has come to my attention, that some readers have no idea what I’m talking about when I say Tahina.  So here ya go:

Three different brands of tahina

Go buy some tahina paste.  Outside of Israel, tahina is generally stored in the area of the market near the other nut butters.  (In Israel it has it’s own aisle!)  The only ingredient will be “Ground Sesame Seeds”

When you open the jar, usually these is sesame oil on top and you need to stir it back in, like natural peanut butter.

Different brands of tahina will have different tastes.  You can buy it made from unhulled sesame seeds and hulled sesame seeds, from black sesame seeds or white sesame seeds, etc.  Some will taste bitter right out of the jar.  Make a note to never buy that brand again!  Tahina should taste DELICIOUS and even a little sweet right out of the jar!

Magic Tahina Dressing

1/2 cup tahina paste

2 cloves garlic, pressed

1/2 cup water

juice of 1/2 lemon

salt and pepper to taste

(Optional:  Add 2-3 Tbsp of Nutritional Yeast for a scrummy cheesey flavor!)

Add all ingredients to a bowl and stir.  At first it is going to separate into a disastrous mess and you will curse my name. (see pictures below)  Relax and just keep stirring.  That mess is part of the tahina magic alchemy.  In another 30 seconds, you will have a creamy emulsified sauce, yay!

Variation:  Adding a few handfuls of minced fresh parsley will give you GREEN Tahina Dressing and loads more calcium and nutrition!

Ack!  What is this stringy mess??

Just keep stirring…

No!  Now it’s even worse!

Just Keep Stirring!

Ah, finally creamy, smooth tahina!

Oh ye of little faith.