Fattoush

Ingredients
2 pita pocket breads, cut into strips about 2 cm wide, then toasted and crumbled
2 heads Romaine lettuce, chopped
4 spring onions, thinly sliced
4 tomatoes, diced (let them drain a minute or two if extra juicy)
1/2 cucumber, diced (same size as tomatoes)
small bunch coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves
small bunch coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley (leaves only, no stems)

Dressing
2-4 cloves garlic, chopped (depending on how garlic you like it)
1 teapoon salt
lemon juice, to taste
1 teaspoon Sumac, plus more for sprinkling at the end if desired)
125 ml extra virgin olive oil

Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C. While the oven heats, mash together the chopped garlic and salt using a mortar and pestle, or the side of a knife. Put the garlic paste in a small bowl, then the add lemon juice and 1 teaspoon Sumac. Whisk in the olive oil and set dressing aside. (You can also make the dressing in a glass jar and shake to combine.)

Cut the pita into strips about 2 cm wide and arrange on baking sheet. Bake until the pita strips are crisp but only just starting to brown, less than 10 minutes. Watch carefully as they can go from crisp to overly brown rather quickly.

Remove the outer leaves from the Romaine, trim the stem end and then wash and dry with paper towels. Cut  the Romaine into quarters lengthwise, then turn and chop crosswise into small pieces. (If you have a salad spinner, you can chop the Romaine first, then wash it.) Put chopped lettuce into salad bowl large enough toss all ingredients.

Chop tomatoes, spring onions, cucumbers, mint, and parsley and add to the lettuce. Add about half of the dressing and toss, then add the crumbled pita chips and toss again with more dressing. (You may not want to use all the dressing, but this salad should be quite wet.) At this point the salad should sit for a few minutes (or longer) to let flavours blend and so the pita chips absorb some of the dressing. To serve, arrange the salad on a platter and sprinkle with a bit more Sumac.

We, the Amsterdam Flavours chefs, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you have any questions on how to prepare it or just want to send us your feedback, you can reach us here Contact Amsterdam Flavours