Vegan Greek-Style Pita Nachos

Which is all to say, summer has arrived. The girls have been out of school for two weeks and our days have been spent lazily at pools and parks, reading books, and frolicking in the backyard. And even though deadlines and emails are piling up in my work life, these weeks have been a nice respite from the daily grind.

These vegan Greek-style pita nachos called to me instantly. Not really nachos at all – there’s neither fake nor real cheese – this dish is essentially a big cucumber and tomato salad smothered in an herbaceous tahini dressing and served over savory pita crisps. Easy to throw together and delightful to eat, this is ideal as an appetizer or light summer meal.

Ingredients:

Toasted Pita Wedges

• 4 whole wheat pitas (7-inch)
• extra virgin olive oil , for brushing
• sea salt

Mediterranean Salad

• 1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained or 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (I omitted these because I'm allergic)
• 1 medium tomato , finely chopped (I used cherry tomatoes)
• 1 small cucumber , finely chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions (about 2)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley , plus more for garnish
• 1/4 cup pitted and thinly sliced Kalamata olives
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 large clove garlic , pressed or minced
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Herbed Tahini Dressing

• 1/3 cup tahini
• 1/4 cup lemon juice (from 1 1/2 to 2 lemons)
• 1/4 cup mixed fresh leafy herbs ( I like half flat-leaf parsley and half basil or cilantro)
• 2 tablespoons water , plus more as needed
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions:

For Pita Wedges:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup. Brush both sides of the pitas with olive oil and lightly sprinkle with sea salt. Stack one pita on top of another and use a sharp chef's knife to slice them into 8 small wedges, like you would a pizza. Repeat with remaining 2 pitas. Arrange wedges enenly across baking sheet and bake until lightly crisp and golden, about 10 minutes, flipping halfway through.

To Assemble the Salad:

1. In a medium bowl, combine the chickpeas, tomato, cucumber, green onions, parsley, olives, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, and sea salt. Toss, then taste and add more salt if necessary. Set aside to marinate.

To Make the Tahini Sauce:

1. In a small food processor, combine tahini, lemon juice, herbs, water, and salt and blend until smooth, pausing to scrape down sides as necessary. (Alternatively, you can finely chop the herbs and whisk together the sauce in a measuring cup.) The sauce should be nice and creamy, but drizzle easily off the back of a spoon – if not, blend in a bit more water. Taste and add more salt, if necessary.
2. To assemble nachos, arrange toasted pita wedges across a large serving plate (some overlap is fine). Stir salad once more, then use a slotted serving spoon to scoop the salad onto the pita wedges, leaving the messy salad juices in the bowl. Generously drizzle herbed tahini sauce over salad. Top nachos with a sprinkle of parsley. Serve immediately.