Fast times in Elissa’s kitchen – Part 2: Feta tomato salad

Part 2 of Fast Times in Elissa’s Kitchen also works well with the Meatless Monday theme!  The combination of Feta cheese and fresh tomatoes is one of my favorites.  My wonderful boyfriend Tom loves it on top of pizza.  Here is a much healthier option – make it a salad.

Start off with some fresh tomatoes.  I picked Campari, because they’re not as tart as grape tomatoes and they’re not as juicy as beefsteaks.  Given that it’s July and pretty much tomato season, these were especially delicious.  Don’t they look gorgeous?

I cut my Camparis into fourths, because they’re definitely more than a mouthful.   This seriously takes only about 5 minutes to make and it’s so tasty and a bit refreshing.  Here is the recipe (if you need one).

Feta tomato salad

• 1 package of Campari tomatoes (about ten)
• 1/3 of a cup of chopped red onion
• 1/4 of a cup of crumbled Feta cheese
• a splash of vinegar – Balsamic, red raspberry, red wine work really well.  I used red wine.
• a splash of olive oil
• salt and pepper

Cut the tomatoes into fourths, then add the onion and Feta cheese.  Mix well with the vinegar and oil and top with some salt and pepper.  Done!

This was a part of my lamb and zucchini with minted chimichurri dinner and it was a nice, garlic-free side to the dinner. The dinner overall was fantastic.  It was healthy, light, and delicious.  And of course, it was fast.

In going with my theme for this dinner, here are some tips to help speed things up in the kitchen:

1. If you’re going to do a lot of chopping, just use a food processor, especially if the precision of the chop doesn’t matter.  Even though you’ll have three more things to clean at the end of the dinner, it’s still a time saver.
2. Get your marinades done first, so while your food is marinading, you can do other productive things such as make a Feta tomato salad or minted chimichurri sauce.
3. Set a realistic goal for when you want to eat.  I know that may sound kind of silly, but setting a time goal can make a huge difference in kitchen time management.
4. Sharpen your knives before you start cooking.  A dull knife not only slows you down, but it’s also dangerous.
5. Clear out the clutter from your cooking area before you start cooking.  This allows you to organize all your ingredients and tools on the counter/table/island within reach of your cooking/prep space.  In fact, go over to your kitchen right now and clear the clutter that you can get rid of now.  You’ll feel great!

Those are just some tips for faster times in my kitchen.  Anyone else have any good time saving tips?

Tagged as: feta, salad, tomatoes