Lemon Za’atar Grilling Cheese
with Greek Salad & Garlic Pita Croutons
- Sesame
- Wheat
- Eggs
- Milk
Our grilling cheese is an amazing protein-packed staple to add to any dish—especially in this 25-minute meal! When you fry it up, it gets perfectly gooey on the inside, and crispy on the outside... Coat it in za’atar and it's the star of the show in tonight’s hearty vegetarian dinner. The cheesy slabs are served atop crisp romaine, fresh cucumber, zesty marinated tomato and red onion, and tossed with a sweet Greek vinaigrette. And since no salad is complete without some crunch, this one has pita chips crushed on top!
Ingredients
1 unit
Baby Lettuce
1 unit
Red Onion
2 unit
Whole Wheat Pitas
(Contains: Sesame, Wheat)
8 ounce
Grilling Cheese
1 unit
Lemon
3 ounce
Greek Vinaigrette
(Contains: Eggs, Milk)
1 clove
Garlic
1 unit
Mini Cucumber
1 unit
Tomato
1 tablespoon
Za'atar Spice
(Contains: Sesame)
Not included in your delivery
teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
1 teaspoon (tsp)
Cooking Oil
1 teaspoon (tsp)
Sugar
2 tablespoon (tbsp)
Butter
(Contains: Milk)
teaspoon (tsp)
Black Pepper
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Adjust rack to middle position and preheat oven to 450 degrees. Wash and dry produce. • Peel and mince or grate garlic. • In a small, microwave-safe bowl, combine garlic with 2 TBSP butter (4 TBSP for 4 servings). Microwave until butter has melted, 30 seconds. • Brush pitas all over with garlic butter; cut each pita into 8 wedges. Arrange on a baking sheet; season generously all over with salt and pepper. • Bake on middle rack until chips are browned and crisp, 11-13 minutes. Wash out bowl.
• Meanwhile, zest and quarter lemon. Halve, peel, and thinly slice half the onion (whole onion for 4 servings). Dice tomato into ¾-inch pieces. Trim and discard root end from lettuce; chop leaves into bite-size pieces until you have 3 cups (6 cups for 4). Halve cucumber lengthwise; slice into ¼-inch-thick half-moons. TIP: Keep grilling cheese in fridge until just before cooking to keep it from melting in the pan.
• In bowl used for garlic butter, whisk together juice from two lemon wedges, ¼ tsp sugar, and a pinch of salt (for 4 servings, use three lemon wedges, ½ tsp sugar, and a big pinch of salt). • Add sliced onion and tomato; toss to coat. Set aside, stirring occasionally.
• Slice grilling cheese into four large pieces (eight pieces for 4 servings). Place Za’atar Spice on a plate. Coat cheese in spice, pressing to adhere. • Heat a drizzle of oil in a large, preferably nonstick, pan over medium high heat. Add cheese and cook until browned, 1-2 minutes per side (cook in batches if necessary). • Set aside on a plate to cool slightly.
• In a large bowl, combine lettuce, cucumber, and marinated onion and tomato (draining first). • Wipe out bowl used for onion and tomato; add Greek Vinaigrette and ½ tsp sugar (1 tsp for 4 servings).
• Add dressing to bowl with salad; toss to coat. Crush pita chips into bite- size pieces; add to salad and toss to combine. • Slice cheese into bite-size pieces. • Divide salad between plates; top with cheese and as much lemon zest as you like. Serve with remaining lemon wedges on the side.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many loved the grilling cheese's taste and texture, especially with za'atar seasoning; some found it bland or odd.
- Ease of prep: Several noted longer prep time than expected; some struggled with cheese sticking or pitas burning.
- Suggestions: Consider cutting cheese smaller, reducing onion, adding olives, and adjusting pita cooking time to prevent burning.
- Portions: Some found it very filling; others wanted more veggies or felt it wasn't substantial enough for dinner.
- Freshness: Several mentioned receiving wilted lettuce or spoiled produce; many praised the overall freshness when ingredients were good.
Reviews from our home cooks
Really great although way too many steps for a salad... and there must be an easier/more efficient way to make croutons. Would also prefer fresh salad dressing - Greek can just be red wine vinegar oregano garlic and lemon juice
Enjoyed this meal. Prep time was longer than advertised, but it was very tasty and made a beautiful presentation. Next time around, I would grill the halloumi on a lower heat to ensure the inside was warm and melty before the outside gets too browned. I was worried that the zaatar wouldn't stick well to the outside of the dry chilled cheese slices no matter how hard I pressed it, but it still browned nicely and was very tasty.
The grilling cheese is a favorite ingredient of ours, and I really loved it in this salad. The combo of cool crisp salad with warm cheese is so good!
Amazing! The crunch on the pita would make salad hard to eat. Also, called for too much butter on pitas. Thus did not go toast pitas, instead made a pita pocket with cheese and salad. Salad and salad dressing were excellent!
The grilling cheese was very delicious, but I'm not sure if the proportions for this meal were right. Giving four stars because there didn't seem to be enough lettuce/cucumber to balance out how much of the pita cracker and cheese there was.
We had never had the grilling cheese before but we really liked it. We didn't like the pita. We should have just cut them and eaten them without baking them.
Love the lemon and zatar. The romaine was awesome. Would love to see more recipes like this!!
I ended up with too much dressing and I used too much onion on the salad. I do like the grilling cheese but it was a little heavy on the salad.
Sooooo tasty! Just felt like I didn't have enough zatar seasoning to cover the cheese. Added some of my own to the cheese and the pita. Yum!
Lots of flavor. Love the grilling cheese. Taste like pizza.
