Panzanella-Inspired "Fatteh"

by Diana Jarrar August 10, 2022

I'm hiding from my mom with this recipe- it's so non-traditional; I know she'll yell at me! Dates in fatteh?? Never! But I'm all about innovating in the kitchen and this was just the most mouth-watering combo so I'm not mad about it!

Fatteh is a general category of dishes and it literally means "to crumble" in Arabic. It's made of humble ingredients like stale bread, garbanzo beans, and tomatoes. But it's the magic of dressing all these ingredients with a vinaigrette that's out of this world! The dates and yogurt round out the flavors for a perfect side dish or snack.

The *key* to this vinaigrette is letting the tomatoes sweat in salt for about 15 minutes. The salt draws out the moisture from the tomatoes giving them an interesting texture and more intense flavor. Here's the pro tip: use the water from the tomatoes IN the dressing! I learned this from the legendary food alchemist J. Kenji López-Alt.

Ingredients:

A loaf of your fave sourdough, toasted with olive oil & salt

2 tbsp salt

1 pint Cherry tomatoes

1 can Garbanzo beans

10 Zahidi Dates, pitted and sliced

Parsley

Yogurt to taste

For the dressing: 2 tbsp Red wine vinegar, 2 cloves crushed garlic, 1/2 tsp dijon mustard, 6 tbsp olive oil, 1 small shallot, pepper to taste

Process:

1. Roughly rip the bread, toss with olive oil and salt, and toast in the oven at 350F for 15 mins.

2. Slice tomatoes in half, place in colander with bowl underneath to catch liquids. Season with 2 tbsp salt and let sit for 15 mins.

3. Make dressing by combining all ingredients above plus the water from the tomatoes.

4. Assemble salad by tossing toasted bread, tomatoes, dates, parsley, and dressing together. Dollop with some yogurt and enjoy the menage of flavors! Sahtain!