Green beans are fresh and flavorful in the summer months, and make a great main-dish salad for lunch, or the perfect accompaniment to grilled foods. For tender beans, an hour in the marinade is plenty; huge beans can be done a day ahead of time. Feta cheese is the most flavorful topper, but shredded Parmesan or Romano work well too, especially if cooking for kids.

Bring a large (at least 4 quarts) pot of water to a boil. While the water is coming to a boil, mix the GREEK SEASONING and water in a roomy bowl. After 5 minutes, add the oil, vinegar, sugar, and onion. Mix well, set aside. Wash the beans, cut off the stem end, and chop into roughly 2 inch chunks. Place the beans in the rapidly boiling water. Young and tender beans will be done after 3 minutes, large beans can take 6-7 minutes. Taste if in doubt-just tender is what you want, not soft, not hard. Remove the beans and run under cold water until cool. This will stop the cooking and keep the beans green. Toss in the bowl with the dressing, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Add quartered tomatoes and half of the feta cheese, toss to combine. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top (it looks nice and white that way) and serve.

Serves: 6-8 as a side dish.
Prep. time: 10 minutes.
Cooking time: 3-7 minutes