Jerusalem Salad

In the ongoing posts related to my son’s graduation, this was the one recipe (if I really believe that I just wanted to try one new recipe) that I was very interested to try.  I know it is only a salad but I have always really liked a Jerusalem salad which is odd because I am not a big fan of tahini.  Tahini is in the dressing but you really can moderate how much you use and still get traditional flavor you expect but with a mild twist.

What I like about this salad is the combination of the vegetables, adding the romaine and then letting the vegetables marinate in the dressing.  The red onions take on a great flavor and texture as they marinate.

Ingredients (adapted from Food.com):

2 tins of Roma tomatoes, sliced in half
3 large english cucumbers, , finely diced
1 large red onion, diced
3 heads of roughly chopped romaine lettuce hearts
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup tahini, plus more or lesss as desired
4 tablespoons white vinegar
salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Combine the tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, and lettuce in a large mixing bowl.

In another bowl, whisk the lemon juice, olive oil, tahini, vinegar, salt, and pepper together until the dressing is creamy and pale.  Taste it and add any of the oil, lemon juice or tahini in to get to the taste and consistency you desire.  The dressing should be somewhat thick.

About 15 – 20 minutes before serving, pour the dressing over the vegetables and toss thoroughly to coat.  Generally, the dressing is added right before serving by I like the salad to be well dressed.  Enjoy!