I don’t know about the weather near you right now, but here in South Carolina…it is HOT! So hot that I plan when I will cook anything that involves heating the stove/oven. This timing is usually whenever the sun is down and ideally in the morning as it is the coolest. Even when the sun goes down at night it stays hot for hours. I was walking this past Friday and the street was a little gummy. Yes, that’s right, the street was melting.
It makes a lot of sense that I have been craving chilled foods. Different types of salads, smoothies, ice cream, cold sandwiches, if it’s cold then you name it. It will eat it. This brings me to today’s recipe. I was inspired by one of my good friends when I asked for new salad suggestions to mix up my life. She suggested a recipe with artichokes to which I immediately agreed. I am a HUGE fan of artichokes. Those bad boys are not only delicious, but they are amazing for you too! I love it when that works out. Artichokes are loaded with fiber, folate, Vitamins C and K, and are actually in the USDA’s top 20 antioxidant rich foods. What is not to love?
I have been meaning to make some tofu feta so I decided to add it to my artichokes and the recipe just built from there. What I ended up with was a delicious Greek themed summer salad. This Greek salad with tofu feta is cool, tangy, and extremely healthy for you. Something I really enjoy about this particular salad is it is oil free. You could add some oil if you wanted but I found that it was moist enough on its own and the lack of oil kept it nice and light. I have been eating it by itself but I think it would be fantastic on a bed of lettuce or thrown in a wrap with some spinach and maybe some sprouts.
If you make this recipe and love it (or hate it…but I hope not) tell me about it! Comment below or use my hashtag #peppersandpeaches on instagram and/or twitter so I can see your masterpiece!
- For tofu feta:
- 1 block extra firm tofu
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tbs apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp dried dill
- For salad:
- 1 cup tofu feta
- 1 cup sliced cherry tomatoes
- 1 tbs minced, fresh basil
- ½ cup sliced kalamata olives
- 1 12 oz jar of quartered artichoke hearts
- First, grab a small mixing bowl to prepare the tofu feta. Drain and squeeze you block of tofu. Do not worry about getting all of the liquid out, a good firm squeeze or two over your sink will work for this recipe.
- Next, crumble the block of tofu by hand into small pieces and place in bowl. Add rest of tofu feta ingredients. Toss by hand to incorporate, massaging the tofu to really get the flavors into the tofu crumbles. Set aside.
- Take a medium sized mixing bowl and add tomatoes, olives, basil, and quartered artichokes. Pull artichoke pieces a apart a bit by hand to make them smaller bites. Add the 1 cup of feta.
- Toss until everything is combined. Let sit for at least 1 hour for flavors to merry and salad to chill.
- Serve as a side by itself or top a large bed of lettuce or combine in a wrap with spinach and sprouts.