Recipe: Pineapple Chicken Barbecue 3 ways

A much as I would like to take credit for this recipe, the original idea was my friend Shana's. She came up with it one night for Shabbas dinner and though she served it as chicken pieces and I adapted it to a Pulled Chicken, it is still AMAZING either way. My husband quite possibly married me for this dish. I have also made it once or twice as chicken skewers on the BBQ as well and it is quite good that way. The pineapple juice tenderizes the chicken so that it literally melts in your mouth and the chunks of Pineapple get this amazing sweet smoky flavor. All adaptations are below so feel free to experiment and enjoy!!!

Ingredients:

Chicken Breast or Chicken pieces: 4-7 boneless skinless breasts in chunks for skewers or leg/thigh pieces or breast on bone pieces for pulled bbq/ whole chicken

BBQ sauce- 2 bottles of your favorite. I usually use a honey BBQ

Chunk Pineapple- 2 cans with juice

Onion- 2-3 medium onions, julienned for pulled BBQ, quartered and separated for chicken pieces or chicken skewers

Red pepper flakes- a teaspoon or so, more if you like a kick

Whole Garlic Cloves- 5-6, more if you like a real garlicky flavor. Smash once with a knife to release flavor

Bell Pepper- 2-3 Bell Peppers in chunks if you are making Skewers only

Also need:

Large Bowl or Ziploc bag for marinating everything

Skewers (if making Chicken Skewers)

Large, deep baking pan (I use at least a 9x13 pan and usually use a throw away because cleanup is a bit of a nightmare)

Mini Baguettes (if serving as pulled chicken sandwiches)

To Prepare:

Preparation for all three dishes is fairly the same. In a large bowl combine BBQ Sauce, Garlic and Red Pepper Flakes. Stir until evenly mixed. Next add Pineapple Chunks and juice and mix. Add your choice of Chicken and stir until evenly coated. Marinate Chicken Mixture for at least an hour, the more you marinate, the more the acid in the Pineapple tenderizes the chicken. I will break down the dishes from here as the cooking instructions are different.

For Pulled BBQ Chicken:

You can use either Chicken on the bone or boneless for this dish. Chicken on the bone is a bit more difficult because you have to stop halfway through and remove the meat and skin but I find that it makes a better BBQ. Once you are finished marinating the meat, pour the entire mixture into a large, deep baking dish and add the julienned onion. Put into the oven at 375* and bake. After about 45 minutes pull out chicken. If you are using the boneless skinless breasts, simply use a fork to shred the meat and mix it in with the sauce. If you used Chicken on the bone, allow it to cool slightly and separate the meat from the bones/skin. Shred the meat and mix it into the sauce. Return the meat and sauce into the oven for another half and hour to 45 minutes, stirring regularly. You may have to add a bit more water to the mix if the sauce begins to get to thick. Continue to stir and cook until the meat has completely tenderized and the sauce is thick. Serve in a hot crusty baguette with fresh cole slaw for an amazing sandwich or use as a main dish with your choice of sides. YUM!

For BBQ Chicken Pieces:

Add Onion Chunks to BBQ mixture and pour into deep baking dish. Put into oven at 375* and bake until skin on the Chicken begins to brown and the meat starts to pull away from the bone (approximately 1 hour). Be sure to marinate with the excess sauce regularly, adding water if needed to thin out the sauce. You can also use a baking bag for this which will self marinate the chicken and keep it moist. Once Chicken is finished, remove from the oven and serve with rice or potatoes. Amazing!

For BBQ Grilled Chicken Skewers:

Add onion to BBQ chicken mixture. Stir until onion is evenly coated with sauce. Skewer Chicken chunks, Pineapple and Onion chunks onto skewers, alternating so that the flavors will mix well. Place on BBQ grill and cook, brushing with leftover sauce regularly. Remove from grill when cooked and serve with your choice of Summery BBQ Sides. Enjoy!!

My Life in the Nudist Colony

I can't say when my hatred of clothes began, but it started at a very early age. My parents would be able to figure out where I was by following a trail of socks, shorts, t-shirt and finally a diaper or underpants and eventually catch me running around as naked as the day I was born, usually getting into something I shouldn't be. I grew up on a farm where the nearest neighbors we're nearly a mile away so nudity never was an issue. As kids, we never had bathing suits to swim at the river, underwear or our birthday suits were swimsuit enough. Even as teenagers, my sister and I regularly sunbathed on the dock of our pond in nothing but a smile back when tan lines were our biggest worries. It never occurred to me that it was a taboo thing to do. In college I lounged around my house in my underwear comfortably, not worrying if my roommates popped in my room or whether the neighbors caught a peek while I grabbed the mail from the box on the door. I just never was that worried about it. I went to art school and would routinely pose for classmates who needed a model. I was always comfortable in my own skin. It was clothes that made me miserable. It was such a pain to find something flattering, comfortable, matching, and on top of that, CLEAN! And to do this day after day, ugh...

When I moved to Israel clothes went from being a bit of a bother to the bane of my existence. There is no nice way of saying it. Israel is the summer is HOT. Not just hot, miserably, sticky, sweaty HOT HOT HOT! Luckily the culture here is very relaxed, people live in beach wear. Breezy skirts and bathing suit tops under tanks are perfectly acceptable work attire at many offices. After all, it is more than likely that the workers spent the morning on the beach before heading into work. The shuk has hundreds of beautifully dyed silk skirts, harem pants from India, and fishermen style wrap pants from Thailand that you can get for around 35 shek (about 8 USD), sometimes less if your good at bartering, or better at flirting. I happen to be fairly good at both and quickly stocked my formerly somber wardrobe that consisted mainly in blacks, greys and red fitted silhouettes with bright colors and patterns, everything flowey and breezy, nothing touching my skin. It was the next best thing to naked and since I was working full time it was as good as I could get.

This was great the first two summers I spent here. My third summer I got pregnant. Very quickly I grew out of all my lovely breezy clothes, despite their elastic waistbands. On top of that our washing machine, not so affectionately nicknamed Old Whacky Whacky for the helicopter like noises it made during its 5 hour wash cycle, died a not so peaceful death. Since I was already bedridden for numerous reasons I just gave up on clothes. I think I wore clothes a total of 35 times from August to late April. Firstly, I wasn't going anywhere, secondly NOTHING fit, and frankly, I couldn't be bothered to do laundry by hand and I sure as shit couldn't be bothered to trek to a laundry mat!!!

We finally got a new machine when we moved apartments as we knew we were going to be cloth diapering and therefore really needed a working washer. I did oh, A MILLION loads of laundry in those first few days to catch up on all of the clothes from when Old Whacky Whacky was broken. After the baby came, my clothes still didn't really fit. Since I hadn't been wearing clothes, I hadn't bothered to buy any maternity outfits either. This resulted in my still fat post preggo, post Csection, weirdly shaped, little 70 year old fat man bod not fitting in ANYTHING. Ok I have like 3 tshirt style dresses and a pair of leggings that I throw on for trips to the market or to the family for Friday card nights but other than that, nada.. I need a case of Crisco and a 5 story building to get into anything proper.

To be honest, I don't think I would wear stuff anyways. On top of everything I'm breastfeeding, and I'm lazy. I figure bottles take what 10 mins to prepare? 5 minutes best case scenario?? Yeah, definately too lazy for that, not to mention I'm pretty sure my son thinks he would die of starvation if he had to wait that long. Straight from the tap with a Shirt, bra and breast pads takes about 45 seconds to a minute to get organized and baby eating. Hmmm.. Still too much time. Have you ever HEARD how loud a hungry baby can scream?? Topless? Baby to boob in 3.5 seconds. We have a winner!! When you have a little fat man like mine, those few extra seconds are the difference between a hungry whimper and all out War!

So I've taken to running around the house in nothing but underwear, hubby and little man too. As hot as it is and with only one fan and no central air its hard for me to fathom wearing much else. This of course does have its interesting moments. I get so used to my nudist life that I forget about the neighbors and run outside to bring the diapers in off the line. Its also quite an adventure when friends or family decide to drop by unannounced. Choruses of "Rega!!(wait)" can be heard through the door as we scramble for the nearest items of clothing. Then there are the great moments when the boobs are ready for baby but the baby is asleep, or I'm changing a diaper, resulting in a sort of "milky brick road" from point a to point b until I can grab a towel, tissue or t-shirt to staunch the flow. My husband looking on in horror at the fountained spray, a sort of milky version of the Austin Powers Fem-Bots.

My son is such a naked baby too. He is happiest in only a diaper. Strike that. He is happiest in nothing but his birthday suit, but as often as I get peed on, I pretty much insist on that little fold of cloth between him and me. If he has it his way he would be naked all the time, free to stick his little hands in whatever interesting substance erupted from his little body, bare butt to the world. I literally have to fight my in-laws every visit to keep the clothes OFF of him. Our last conversation went something like this: (again, imagine bad Hebrew punctuated with English and Russian)

All of us and a few friends of the family sitting around a table on the patio with Bub sleeping nearby.

Friend of family (Mother to two, Babuska to two): "Why no pants on the Yeled (baby boy)??"

Me: "It's a million degrees outside! He doesn't like to be hot."

FOF: "But he's Catanchik(little little) He gets cold!!"

Me: "But the doctor said.....(yeah, not gonna lie, this approach didnt work this time)"

FOF: "No. He needs Pants. I'm Wearing Pants, She's wearing pants (pointing to MIL), He's wearing pants (Hubby) You're wearing pants (me). Baby NEEDS PANTS!!!!!"

Me (at the end of my rope): "Its HOT!!! He doesn't NEED Pants!! If you all weren't here I wouldn't be wearing Pants either!!! I hate pants!! He hates Pants!! NO PANTS!!!!"

Things got quiet after that....

I wonder at what point I will have to curb my nudity around the little man. Right now he just sees me as lunch on the go, free range, snack when ya wanna, boobie for baby kinda thing. I walk in the room and he smiles, mouth open wide, head shaking from side to side in anticipation. I don't think I have the same appeal when he's 13 and his friends are over to hang out in the living room. At least not for him, and I don't particularly want to become the subject of teenage fantasies, particularly not at the expense of my son. I think nothing of it now. He's a baby. I hope to raise him in a natural home where he is not afraid of the human body, where he is comfortable enough to ask questions and not feel ashamed. I also don't want to em-bare-ass him (pun intended) or make him feel uncomfortable in those oh so awkward teenage years.

I figure the only solution when he starts asking questions is to move somewhere VERY cold. I'm kidding... Sort of. I have gotten fairly used to the freedom of it, freedom from heat, freedom from being bound by buttons and elastic and snaps and ties, and most of all, freedom from tons of laundry!! For now we are free to run around our house as G-d intended us, and some day in the future when the little man is old enough to notice, I might have to invest in a robe, or be like those Hollywood types who run around in a bathing suit and heels (Imagine that!! haha). Until then, life will remain comfortable, free from the confinement of buttons and tons of laundry, and occasionally sprinkled with milk:).

Recipe: Crazy Veggie Tuna Salad with Boiled Egg

This recipe is my Hubby's favorite way to eat tuna. It is a great way to add more veggies into your diet and definitely makes the usual tuna sandwich a lot more exciting. This recipe makes enough for several sandwiches or can be used as a main dish for a cold Summer supper.

Ingredients:

Tuna: 2 cans drained(I prefer tuna in water but the Israeli way is Tuna in Oil)

Corn: 1 small can or the kernels from 2-3 ears fresh

Spring Onion: 3-4 chopped fine with green tops

Onion: 1 medium onion chopped fine (my husband likes both regular onion as well as spring onion in the salad, up to you as to whether you use one or both)

Cucumber: 3-4 medium English thin skin ones, chopped fine with skin (if using the thicker waxy cucumbers, remove seeds and skin)

Dill Pickles: 5-6 chopped fine

Red Bell Pepper: 1 large pepper, chopped fine

Hard Boiled Egg: Peeled and chopped into chunks.

Mayo

Salt

Pepper

Also Need:

Large Salad Bowl

Spoon for Mixing

To Prepare:

Combine Tuna, Corn, Onion, Cucumber, Pickles, Bell Pepper, and Boiled egg into the bowl. Add mayo by the spoonful until it is the consistency that your prefer (usually takes 3-4 good dollops to coat everything). Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix throughly and spread on bread for sandwiches, eat on crackers, or add to a bed of lettuce for a yummy Summer salad. Enjoy!!

Recipe: My MIL's Chicken Salad

This is a really great recipe for when you don't have a lot of time and need something wholesome and tasty for lunch sandwiches or as a dish for a cold supper. This is really great for summer as it is nice and light and a great twist on the usual Chicken Salad. My Mother In Law makes this as a precursor to almost every Friday night dinner and We LOVE it!!

Ingredients:

Chicken: about 2 1/2-3 cups chopped fairly small

Cucumber: 3 or 4 medium cucumbers (I use the seedless English style, with the skin) chopped small, should be about 1 1/2-2 cups

Dill Pickles: 5 or 6 chopped small, should be about 1 1/2-2 cups

Spring Onion: 2-3 chopped fine with tops (this is optional, my MIL doesn't use them but I sometimes like to just for variety)

Mayo

Ketchup

Also Need:

Medium Salad Bowl

Small bowl to make dressing

Spoon for mixing

To Prepare:

Add the Chicken, Cucumbers, and Pickles (and Spring Onion if you are using) into the bowl. Next in the small bowl ad a few large dollops of Mayo and a hefty squirt of Ketchup. Mix together. It should end up fairly pink. Add the Dressing to the salad and adjust Mayo/Ketchup amounts to your taste. Spread on bread for Sandwiches, eat on Crackers, or add to a bed of lettuce for a yummy salad. Enjoy!!!

Tfu Tfu Tfu!! Stop spitting on my Baby!!!

Ah the In-laws... Always a wonderful source of entertainment, and as it seems, also a great source of blog posts. As I learn more about the Russian culture, I am amazed at all of the fuss over babies. Not the usual "Aw so cute blah blah" fuss, the all consuming need to cluck and fret and worry over the tiniest thing. I come from the school of thought that babies somehow survived long before formula (gag), pacifiers, cribs etc and that the best thing for babies is to revert back to our natural instincts and let Baby tell us what he needs. My In-laws, and well every Russian Grandmother that we pass on the street, have a completely different take on things. I have literally been stopped on the street and scolded for carrying my baby in a sling (he needs to be flat on his back apparently at least until he decides to spontaneously jump up and walk one day), not having a pacifier in his mouth (as if having both of his fists shoved in there wasn't enough) or not having him completely covered in a blanket (cause he is going to get cold in the 100*+ Israeli summer). I also have been periodically stopped so that he can be properly fussed over by said Inquisitive Russian Grandmothers, questions about Baby asked and answered, and then an appropriate barrage of Tfu Tfu Tfu administered (more on that momentarily).

My son is most definitely his Father's boy, and in addition to inheriting his mouth, his barrel chest, and his strong legs, he also inherited my husbands inability to tolerate the heat. My husband literally melts in the Israeli summer and Baby melts right along with him. His little feet get sweaty (he also seems to have gotten my husbands stinky feet, so much for the myth that babies were supposed to smell good), his hair sticks to the back of his head, and he gets miserably cranky. We remedy this by dressing him in only a cloth diaper and sometimes a t-shirt during the day and a onesie at night and sitting near a fan as often as possible. Yet every time I send him to his Babushka's for an afternoon play-date he is returned to me, buried in blankets, dressed in footie pajamas with socks, and sweating like a madman! No matter how many times I tell them that he gets too hot, they insist that he is a "Catanchick (little little)" and that he gets cold and that I really need to put more clothes on him or he is going to get sick. The poor thing is going to die of heat stroke I tell you!

I have finally gotten to the point where I blame every parenting descision on the doctors (which they have GREAT faith in). Don't want them to put him in mittens? "The doctor said not to.." Sock free feet? "The doctor said he needs to exercise his nerve receptors" (try translating THAT one!!). We are making a small bit of progress but he still returns a good 6 times out of 10 swaddled up like we're living in Siberia and its the dead of winter.

There is a great fear amongst the Russian Babushka's (My MIL, Her Twin, as well as the 200 or so on the street every day) of the Evil Eye. There is a belief that any sort of celebration of good fortune can bring on the wrath of the Evil Eye and the only way to remedy this is to Spit three times, "Tfu Tfu Tfu". Yes, you read that correctly. Spit. Three times... I kid you not. Now mind you my husband doesn't warn me about any of this craziness before it happens, nooo that would take away all the fun!

Flashback to baby's first introduction to the family. Choruses of "Eze Hamud! (Cutie) Eze Yeled Tov (good boy) Manchick Malinky Crasiba(cute little boy) " etc could be heard around the room followed almost immediately by machine-gun like Tfu-ing. I of course am already paranoid at the fact that my baby is being submitted to a gajillion different germs from being passes around and touched and kisses by all these different people and on top of that your going to SPIT AT HIM?! I almost died. Every time my MIL speaks about him, her stories are punctuated nearly every sentence with the inevitable Tfu Tfu Tfu...

A conversation with my MIL goes something like this (I will spare you the translation, but in your mind picture a conversation in broken Hebrew punctuated by the odd phrase in English and Russian when we run out of words, and illustrated with wild hand movements):

MIL-"How is the baby??"

Me-"Oh he's good, growing, growing"

MIL (picking up baby) "Russian Russian Russian...Tfu Tfu Tfu (kiss) Tfu Tfu Tfu (kiss) Tfu Tfu Tfu (kiss)" (As if one set of Tfu-ing was not enough)

And so the conversation will continue with my stumbling through daily events in broken Hebrew, and my MIL punctuating said conversation with copious amounts of Tfu-age until the daily report is finished and she resumes fussing and cooing at the baby in Russian.

As if this wasn't enough, She will even go so far as to yell at us if we DARE say anything positive about the baby without spitting. My husband and I were sitting around discussing the last well baby checkup (tfu tfu tfu) and Hubby mentioned something about how the baby was gaining weight and that the doctor had said my milk was very good. He neglected to punctuate the discussion with the proper expulsion of spittle and my MIL immediately jumped in and demanded that Hubby spit. I of course was staring at her like she had three heads, and Hubby attempted to ignore silly superstitions and stubbornly refused. A heated argument in Russian followed and she did not relent until the proper noises had been made and the Evil Eye had been properly blinded by bodily fluids... Tfu. Tfu. Tfu.

Recipe: Everything in the Fridge Salad with Grilled Chicken

This salad was created last summer and the ingredients varied based on what was in the fridge at the time. All ingredients below are suggestions, though we found that the more you added the yummier and more exciting the salad became, use any or all that you wish. You can use your favorite dressing. I recommend using a vinaigrette of some kind as it does not overpower the flavors of the vegetables. I recommend the Dijon Mustard Greek Vinaigrette that I posted previously. Enjoy!!

Ingredients:

Lettuce: 1 small head (Spring Lettuce)

Cherry Tomatoes- 1/2 cup

Jerusalem Artichokes- 1 cup chopped and sautéed until slightly crispy (for those of you who don't know Jerusalem Artichokes are a GREAT source of iron, and have a smooth slightly nutty flavor. They can be cooked with or without the skin)

Batata or Sweet Potato- 1 potato thinly sliced and sautéed until slightly crispy

Fresh corn- 2 ears, remove kernels

Carrots- 1-2 shaved

Pine nuts- 1/2 cup toasted

Cashews- 1/2 cup toasted

Sunflower seeds- 1/2 cup toasted

Avocado- 1-2 whole avocados, cubed

Cucumbers- 1-2 medium cucumbers, sliced thin with skin

Grilled Cauliflower- 1/2 cup (can also be used raw if desired)

Grilled Broccoli-1/2 cup (can also be used raw if desired)

Spring Onions- 3-4 chopped finely with tops

Red Onion- 1-2 julienned

Fresh Green Beans- 10-12 snapped into bite sized pieces

Fresh Snow Peas- 1 cup

Hearts of Palm- 3-4 stalks drained and sliced

Artichoke hearts- approx half a can quartered

Bell Peppers- Approx 1/2 cup chopped

Zucchini- 1-2 small zucchini sliced thin with skin

Yellow Squash- 1-2 small Squash sliced thin with skin

Chicken Breast- 1-3 whole breasts

Small amount of Olive oil to Sauté

Salt and Pepper- to taste

Vinaigrette to marinate Chicken and veggies

Ingredients for Greek Vinaigrette:

Olive Oil- 3/4 cup (It is very important to use a good olive oil for optimum taste)

Red Wine Vinegar- 1/2 cup

Lemon Juice- 1 good squeeze

1-2 garlic cloves

Dried Oregano or Italian seasoning- approx 1-1 1/2 tsp

Dijon Mustard- 1 small teaspoon (I use the mustard with the seeds, not the creamy one)

Salt- to taste

Fresh Ground Pepper- to taste

Also Need-

Sauté pan

George Foreman grill for Veggies/ Meat if desired

Large salad Bowl

Salad Tongs

To Prepare Vinaigrette:

Smash Garlic cloves with the side of a large knife to release the flavor. Combine this and the other ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together, adjusting seasoning for taste. It is important to let the dressing sit for at least a half an hour so that the flavors have time to fully disperse throughout the dressing. The longer it sits, the more flavorful it becomes. Dressing lasts several weeks in the fridge and also makes a great healthy marinade for Chicken and fish. Remove whole garlic cloves prior to serving.

To Prepare Salad:

This salad unfortunately has quite a bit of prep before it can be assembled. Some of the vegetables for the salad need to be cooked and cooled before hand. I suggest cooking them before you start chopping the vegetables that are served cold so that the others have time to chill before serving.

To grill the cauliflower and broccoli, first break it down to bite sized florets. I like to drizzle them with a small amount of vinaigrette for flavor though olive oil alone is great too. Toss into a sauté pan over medium heat until veggies are slightly soft but still have a nice crunch. The cauliflower will have a slight brown to it. Remove from heat and place on a paper towel to cool. The paper towel will soak up any excess oil. You can also use an electric grill like a George Foreman to cook the florets. This gives them those pretty grill marks and makes it look oh so fancy!

Next sauté the Jerusalem Artichoke slices in a small amount of olive oil until they are soft in the center, crispy on the edges and semi translucent. They should taste slightly nutty. Do the same with the sliced sweet potatoes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

For the chicken first cut into inch or inch and a half wide strips. Marinate your chicken breast strips in a small amount of Vinaigrette dressing and then either use the George Foreman to cook them, or place on tin foil on a baking sheet in the oven at around 375* F to cook. Chicken is done when it is slightly browned on the outside and no longer pink inside. Chicken can be served hot or cold, in strips on top of the salad or cut into bite sized chunks inside the salad. I prefer bite sized chunks as it is much harder for my husband to hog all the chicken that way:P.

Lastly toast the nuts and seeds that you are going to use in the sauté pan with a tiny amount of olive oil and salt. They are done when they start to turn a bit brown. Set aside on paper towels to cool.

Once you have finished all of the ingredients that need to be cooked, Wash and dry your lettuce and place in the bottom of a large salad bowl. Arrange the vegetables you have decided to use on top of the bed of lettuce. Add the cooled cooked ingredients. Top with Warm or Chilled Chicken breast. Dress the salad right before serving. Toss the salad until the ingredients are evenly coated with Dressing. Season to taste. Serve and enjoy!

Recipe: Greek Salad in Sourdough Bread Bowl

I have loved Greek salad since I was a very small child, the tangy dressing, the salty tart olives, the smoothness of the feta, AMAZING! I would order it above anything else on the menu when out at a restaurant. Many waitresses were surprised to have a 7 year old ordering a salad but I didn't care. To this day it is one of my favorite meals. My favorite way to serve it is in a loaf of crusty sourdough bread so that the dressing soaks into the bread and you literally get to eat it bowl its served in... Yum!

Ingredients for Salad:

Lettuce: 1-2 Small heads (again I like to use to spring lettuce)

Whole Olives : approx 1 cup

Red Onion : 1-2 onions, julienned

Feta Cheese: 1/2-1 cup cut into cubes or crumbled

Cherry tomatoes: approx 1 1/2-2 cups halved

Cucumber- 2 medium cucumbers sliced thin with skin (I prefer the seedless English cucumbers)

Several Single serving loaves Sourdough Bread

Ingredients for Greek Vinaigrette:

Olive Oil- 3/4 cup (It is very important to use a good olive oil for optimum taste)

Red Wine Vinegar- 1/2 cup

Lemon Juice- 1 good squeeze

1-2 garlic cloves

Dried Oregano or Italian seasoning- approx 1-1 1/2 tsp

Dijon Mustard- 1 small teaspoon (I use the mustard with the seeds, not the creamy one)

Salt- to taste

Fresh Ground Pepper- to taste

Also Need-

Small bowl for Dressing

Whisk

Large salad bowl for mixing and serving if you are not serving in the bread

Salad tongs

To Prepare Vinaigrette:

Smash Garlic cloves with the side of a large knife to release the flavor. Combine this and the other ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together, adjusting seasoning for taste. It is important to let the dressing sit for at least a half an hour so that the flavors have time to fully disperse throughout the dressing. The longer it sits, the more flavorful it becomes. Dressing lasts several weeks in the fridge and also makes a great healthy marinade for Chicken and fish. Remove whole garlic cloves prior to serving.

To Prepare Salad:

Wash and dry lettuce and place in the large serving bowl. Top with the Olives, Red Onion, Cucumber, Cherry Tomato and Feta Cheese. Add dressing right before its time to serve. If you are serving in the individual loaves of bread, cut off the tops of the bread and remove the center of the loaves. Toss the salad inside the serving bowl until the ingredients are mixed and evenly coated with dressing. Stuff the bread bowls with salad until full. Place the top of the loaves at an angle on top of the salad and serve... Enjoy!!