3 two-day old pita
150 gm butter
2 garlic cloves, unpeeled
1 tbsp za’atar
4 small Lebanese
cucumbers, thinly sliced
2 tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 red onion, very thinly
sliced, rinsed in iced
water and dried on paper
towel (this removes the
astringent flavour)
1 cup flat-leaf parsley,
roughly chopped
1 cup mint, roughly chopped
2 medium-large cos lettuces,
halved lengthways
SUMAC, GARLIC AND
FETA VINAIGRETTE
40 gm Danish feta, crumbled
60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil
Juice of 2 lemons
1 tsp sumac
1 First make the breadcrumbs
by pulsing the pitas in a blender
until they form large crumbs.
2 Melt butter with the unpeeled
garlic cloves and breadcrumbs
in a large saucepan over
medium heat. Once the butter
has melted, turn up the heat
and whisk until breadcrumbs
are golden brown. Strain
breadcrumbs and garlic
(butter can be reserved for
another dish). Cool slightly.
Fattoush
SERVES 4
“I love this bread salad for
its crunch and sour sumac
tang,” says Charlie Carrington.
“Source the best-quality sumac,
with the aroma and glowing
colour of fresh berries. The
dressing works with lots of
dierent veggies and greens,
so don’t feel locked in by these
- experiment with your own
spin on this Lebanese classic.”
3 When cool enough to handle,
remove garlic cloves from
breadcrumbs and squeeze
flesh from the skins into a
blender. Season crumbs with
a pinch of salt and make sure
they are crunchy and have
an intense garlic flavour, then
mix in the za’atar for colour
and flavour.
4 For vinaigrette, add all the
ingredients to the blender withthe garlic and blend until the
consistency is just thinner than
mayonnaise. Splash some
vinaigrette on a serving plate.
5 Combine all the remaining
salad ingredients (except cos)
in a large bowl and stir through
the remaining vinaigrette. Using
your hands, stu the cos with
the salad mixture and place
on serving plates. Crumble the
breadcrumbs over and serve. This extract from The
Atlas Cookbook by Charlie
Carrington (Hardie Grant
Books, $39.99, pbk) has
been reproduced with
minor GT style changes.GOURMET TRAVELLER 125