Supposedly it is the height of summer, but the only way you would realize this in San Francisco would be by the availability of great summer produce. I had a pile of zucchini that was dumped on graciously given to me by a friend. Even with plans of zucchini bread I needed some other uses. I decided to continue on with my Israeli theme of late and make some fattoush with a little twist.
Fattoush has it origins in the Levant and the word itself comes from the root fatoot, which translates as anything crumbled. There are a bunch of recipes in the family but fattoush or pita salad is probably the most common and a great way to use up stale pita. It is a middle eastern version of panzella and is pretty much a dressed-up Israeli salad with toasted or fried bit of pita stirred in. There are a ton of versions but all include cucumber, tomatoes, and a lemon-olive oil dressing. I decided to add some bell pepper and a big pile of zucchini roasted with red onion. I fancied up my pita with some sumac and topped it with a generous spinkling of feta, because I never pass up the opportunity to include more cheese in my diet.
recipe after the break