Tomato and Goat Cheese Salad

If you’ve been following me on Instagram [@hootzen], you’ll notice I’ve been eating, eating, and doing some more eating lately [oh, and going to the zoo]. Andrew has family in town, so we do what we always do. Eating tour. It’s kind of hard not to do since, y’know, eating is going to happen whether you’re in Portland or not. Might as well make it count.

We’ve been all over the place, sometimes even by bike, thanks to the generous borrowing of bikes from other friends and the fall weather. I could do without the ridiculous wind, which looks like it’s subsided today [of course it has, they’re going home]. Samurai Japanese Cart for tanin-don. Pizza Oasis for a BBQ chicken and spinach slice. Voodoo Too for a Portland Cream. Helser’s for pear and havarti pie and crumpets. Podnah’s for rib tips and calabacitas. Breakfast burritos at Gonzalas Taqueria. Our weight in cheese and ice cream at the Tillamook Cheese Factory. Fire on the Mountain for wings. I’ll spare you the rest. You don’t go hungry in Portland. You make room. Always.

Since the weather has been so nice, the tomato gods have been generous to those of you who planted some. My grandma brought over a huge container of them, all varying sizes, that I’ll have to figure out something to do with them sooner than later. I’m thinking roasted tomato sauce to drown some pasta in, but since I’m a horrible planner, we’ll just have to see. I took a bunch to task with a healthy dose of olive oil, green onions, and goat cheese. I couldn’t tell if the tomatoes were a vehicle for the cheese or the other way around. Regardless, I ate more than my fair share of the pile. There is something really pretty about the simplicity of this salad. I let it marinate in the fridge for awhile before we ate it. I can’t even remember what we ate it with since I loved it so much. It stole the show.

Ingredients

• 3-4 cups cherry or grape tomatoes
• 2oz goat cheese
• 4-6 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 4 green onions, sliced from white to green
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1-2 teaspoons dried Italian blend of herbs [I had a basil, oregano, thyme mixture]
• salt and fresh cracked pepper

Preparation

In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, and garlic. Slice all of the tomatoes in half and toss them in a large bowl with the green onions. Pour the dressing over the top of the tomatoes and toss to coat. Top with the herbs and salt and pepper to taste. Allow to sit in the fridge until serving. Top with goat cheese when served.