There’s a new pizza place in town and it’s proving itself to be no ordinary joint.
With its signature fresh thin crust offered in a choice of honey oat, dusted cornmeal or gluten free and a combination of 32 different toppings (forgive me but I must list just a few: grilled eggplant, grilled zucchini, snow peas, artichoke, pear, avocado, spicy havarti, brie, goat cheese, arugula, fresh tarragon (!), coriander-yogurt drizzle (!!), roasted portobello, shiitake, cashews, pecans, chorizo sausage, tandoori chicken, prosciutto, sirloin steak…). Good heavens, where was I going with this? Right. This new pizza place is quickly ascending to wild popularity.
If you were ever looking for an excuse to treat yourself, this may well be the spot.
But wait, I haven’t even gotten to my favourite part yet!
Pizza hysteria aside, it’s the salads that have stolen the show for this gal. You can always tell the mark of a quality restaurant by the time and effort they put into their sides. And ZaZaZa Pizza nails it. The complimentary house coleslaw with chili-lime vinaigrette is lip-smacking, eye-watering delicious (yup, I like it that much) and the plat de résistance for me, the Feta Crunch Salad with Lemon-LuLu Dressing may well be the best Greek inspired salad I have ever tasted.
So today, I’m putting my own spin on this bountiful and nutritious Greek salad – a relatively painless task given our family’s deep affection for this delicious dish.
I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Revamped Greek Salad with Lemon-Tarragon Vinaigrette
For the Salad:
- 3 large tomatoes, diced or 1 carton of cherry tomatoes sliced in half
- 1 cucumber, sliced and chopped into bite sized pieces
- 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped into bite sized pieces
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped into bite sized pieces
- 1 orange bell pepper, chopped into bite sized pieces
- 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced or chopped as desired
- 1/2 cup (about 70 grams) crumpled or cubed feta cheese
- 1/2 cup sliced Kalamata olive
For the Lemon-Tarragon Vinaigrette:
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp white rice vinegar
- 2 Tbsp fresh tarragon, finely chopped
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp grainy Dijon
- Sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste
~~~~~
Assemble all salad ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
In a separate small container with fitted lid, place all vinaigrette ingredients. Cover lid and shake well before drizzling vinaigrette over salad.
Distribute salad into individual bowls and enjoy.
I love Greek Salad but I need to try this zippy dressing next time I make it – great flavors!
Oh, we used to have a delightful pizza place nearby which sold pizzas with grilled aubergine on top. The owners sold it though and the new people have no imagination at all. It’s all typical fare there now, and nothing as yummy as yogurt-coriander drizzle (yum!).
What a delightful looking salad (I think greek-style salads are one of my favourites because the flavours work so perfectly together!). I bet your dressing gives a lovely fresh lift to it. I had a dish with tarragon in it today… it was a nice surprise, I hadn’t had it in a while and I tend to forget how nice it can be!
A really good pizza place is quite difficult to find, so you are indeed fortunate to have found one in your hood! I agree, a restaurant is measured by its salads, not an easy task to create one beautiful looking and tasty, which is why I’m totally loving your inspired Greek salad. The lemon tarragon is a perfect match for this tasty fresh dish. I’m loving feta but I really, really adore sheep’s milk feta (PC used to have one but I haven’t seen it for a really long time).
Eva http://kitcheninspirations.wordpress.com/
Greek feta salad is such an extraordinary dish, isn’t it? So simple, but so complex at the same time and never disappointing. Now I think I will buy some feta today and prepare it this weekend.
Your tarragon vinaigrette looks very inspiring too. I always put oregano when preparing this salad’s dressing (somehow I have this idea that this is a typical Greek herb…) and never add mustard, so I must try your French twist.
Lovely sunny photos, as always; making me hungry for healthy food, as always!
WOW! Look at that list of toppings! You got my attention! Bummer that Za Za Za is only in Ottawa because it definitely sounds like a pizza joint B and I would love! That Greek salad looks delicious but the highlight for me is definitely the vinaigrette. A good vinaigrette can turn any salad into a real treat. Lemon and tarragon are SO good together. Remember Anne’s Lemon Tarragon Bread? I made it and it’s now our favorite quick bread. I know when I make this salad, it will become our favorite salad! Thanks so much for sharing it!
What a great sounding place…your greek salad sounds terrific and would be wonderful with a slice of pizza.
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This salad is awesome! I can see why you guys love it so much. That restaurant sounds like it would be really dangerous for me. I would want way too many different combinations. I would no doubt quickly become a regular. But since I can’t do that, I will do the next best thing and enjoy this salad! :) Mike and I would love it. I’m guessing the kids may take some growing into this one – that’s a lot of veggies for them to digest. That said, if I put enough olives and feta in for them, they may not complain too much.
That pizza joint sounds fabulous. I have put goat cheese on pizzas before but have never seen it at a restaurant. You have me dreaming of many combinations now.
Wow, I wish there was a pizza place like that near me! I think they should hire you for PR ;) Your salad looks delicious…I’ve been craving a nice crisp salad lately but I’m too lazy to buy all the ingredients, hehe.
What a beautiful fresh salad, and the vinaigrette sounds so lovely.
That does sound like an awesome pizza place…I would want to try every different topping in every different combination ;)
Oh Kelly, I need that pizza place in my area! The California Caprese caught my eye….avocado on pizza!? Yes please!!
This recipe looks so fresh and yummy. I can ALWAYS appreciate a good salad recipe. I started out not liking tarragon, but I’ve kind of grown to love it lately! It’s my mom’s favourite herb, too…perhaps that repeated exposure transformed my taste buds! The colours look gorgeous, too- the whole rainbow!
Thanks for your kind words lately Kelly! I’m glad I can make you smile :-) Your blogs and your comments always make me so happy. I appreciate them so much! xx