Tangy Date Salad with Baby Spinach and Crisp Pita Chips
A simple but elevated date and baby spinach salad loaded with sumac onions, toasted almonds, and the most delicious pomegranate dressing. This is the best way to use medjool dates! Serve with grilled chicken, steak, kebobs or anything else you like!
Calories: 340kcal
Ingredients
Date Salad:
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- ½ cup red onions thinly sliced
- ¼ cup slivered almonds
- 3 tablespoon olive oil divided
- 1 large pita cut into small pieces
- 8-10 medjool dates pitted and sliced
- 5 ounces baby spinach
Dressing:
- 1 tablespoon date syrup see notes
- 1 teaspoon ground sumac plus more
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 cloves garlic pressed
- 1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- PICKLE: Add the sliced onions to a bowl, sprinkle with a ¼ teaspoon sumac and drizzle the vinegar over the onions. Toss to combine and let stand for as long as it takes you to prepare the rest of the salad. Then drain the liquid and use the onions in the salad.
- BLEND: In a bullet blender, combine the date syrup (or date), sumac, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, pomegranate molasses, kosher salt, and 1 tablespoon water until smooth. Taste and adjust the salt, or pomegranate molasses as needed and add extra water if the dressing is too thick.
- TOAST: In a large skillet over medium heat, add the slivered almonds and dry toast them in a pan until fragrant, about 3-6 minutes. Remove them to a plate and let cool. Wipe down the skillet carefully with paper towel.
- FRY: Add the olive oil to the same skillet over medium heat. When hot, add the pita pieces and cook for 4-6 minutes, flipping often until the pita is fried and crispy. Season with a pinch of flakey salt and even a pinch of za’atar seasoning if you’d like. Remove pita chips to a plate for later.
- FINISH: Add the baby spinach to your serving bowl and toss in half of the dressing. Top with the drained sumac onions, toasted almonds, dates and pita chips. Drizzle more dressing on top as desired. Serve immediately once dressed.
Notes
- Swap the date syrup: Add one pitted date to a small bowl and cover with a tablespoon of hot water. Allow the date to soften for 10 minutes. Then drain the water, add the date to the blender, and blend with the other ingredients. You could also use honey in place of the date syrup, but the flavor isn’t as deep.
- Slicing the dates: refrigerate the dates it makes them easier to slice or you can also spray the blade with a light coating of cooking spray.
Nutrition
Serving: 1g | Calories: 340kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 18g | Fiber: 5g
