The bounty of the summer has finally arrived. We planted, we watered, we waited...... All of our favorite veggies are in abundance this time of year. Whether your harvesting your bounty or enjoy going to your local farmers market to get your veggies, enjoy them while they're here. We have three ways for you to savor them. Carol made a Swedish Cucumber Salad, Cyndy has an Asian Slaw with Roasted Peanuts and I made a Beef Salad with sour Cream Dressing. We hope you enjoy them!
Carol made:
KAY'S SWEDISH CUCUMBER SALAD
Fresh-picked vegetables are such a treat-be it from your backyard garden, or purchased from a farm stand or farmer's market.
We've been lucky this year and have had some things actually do WELL in our garden...pardon me while I pass out.....cucumbers are one of those things. This makes me a very happy person, because it allows me to make one of my all-time favorite salads.
I got this recipe from my neighbor Kay years ago. I look forward to making it often-especially with fresh picked cucumbers.
I call this salad "summer in a bowl." It's quick to put together and uses VERY basic ingredients. Its clean, light taste isn't overpowered by anything. The simplicity of it allows the cucumbers to shine, as well they should.
Another thing I adore about it is it lasts a long time in the refrigerator...and it tastes better the longer it sits.
I didn't have fresh dill this time, so used 1 tsp. dried dill weed (thank you Cyndy-that dill from Ikea is WONDERFUL)....it worked just fine.
The cucumbers and fresh parsley came from the garden, so it's not only tasty, but economical too!
If you love cucumbers like we do, I hope you'll give this a try,
Carol
KAY'S SWEDISH CUCUMBER SALAD
7 large unpeeled cucumbers
6 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1-2 Tbs. chopped fresh dill (or 1 tsp. dried dillweed)
3/4 c. white or apple cider vinegar (I use cider vinegar)
1 small onion, thinly sliced (optional-I always add onion)
Score cucumbers by running the tines of a fork down the sides. Slice very thin; place them, along with the onions (if using), in a deep bowl. Press down on the cucumbers with the palms of your hands to release some of the juices.
Sprinkle with sugar, parsley and dill; toss and pour vinegar over. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, then press again. Juice should cover cucumbers.
Cover and chill well before serving. Serves 4-6.
Cyndy made:
Asian Slaw with Roasted Peanuts
I got this recipe from Carol. She finds some of the best recipes. This one came from Erzapoundcake.com.
I love Asian Flavors. They just appeal to me in a way I can't explain. Something about the simplicity of the ingredients to the way it packs a flavor punch when you take that first bite. As Rebecca says on her blog, it's easy to tweak the ingredients to suit your taste, I did. I can't eat Peanuts so I used roasted cashews instead. I can't eat fresh lime segments, love them, but just can't eat them, so I omitted them (I did use the lime juice in the dressing). I really wanted to make this salad and had both kinds of cabbage, but no spinach so I used what I had on hand. So, digging into my veggie drawer I came up with green onions, Mini peppers in red, yellow and orange, carrot slivers and cilantro. The last time I made Chinese Chicken Salad I used cilantro and it gave the salad a nice flavor. The mini peppers are mild yet full of flavor and I use them when I make soup. The Salad was Tart, Tangy and not really sweet, and had a nice mild flavor. I decided to kick it up a notch and use rice wine vinegar infused with garlic. That did the trick. Just one tablespoon added to the dressing and that was all it took for me.
Thanks for the great find Carol!
Thanks Rebecca, this salad ROCKS and so do You!!
Asian Slaw with Roasted Peanuts
From Rebecca Crump (EzraPoundCake.com)
Ingredients:
Serves 6 to 8
1. In a large bowl, combine the cabbages, spinach, green onions and lime segments. Toss.
2. In a small bowl or food processor, combine the oil, rice wine vinegar, lime juice, sesame oil, ginger, brown sugar and soy sauce.
3. Toss the slaw with the dressing, season with freshly ground black pepper, and add the roasted peanuts.
Bunny made:
For our family dinner I made a creamed cucumber salad with a sour cream dressing that everybody loved. In this part of the country just about every creamed cucumber salad dressing is made with mayonnaise.
I was stepping out of my comfort zone making this, didn't know what it was going to taste like....or if anybody would even like it. Fortunately everyone was pleasantly surprised and really enjoyed it. Which got me thinking...... I've always wanted to try a Beef Salad, never had one, never made one, what's it like? The first thing I thought of after tasting the dressing on the cucumbers was, I bet this would taste great with beef! I had a sirloin steak in the fridge that I broiled and cut on the bias. After that it was just a matter of building the salad with all the fresh veggies I love. It was light and refreshing and so good! I found the original recipe on Epicurious and tweaked it to my liking. I started with:
1 cup of sour cream
1 tbls of apple cider vinegar
sugar to taste
salt and pepper to taste
dill weed
With this base recipe you can add whatever you want. Make this a day ahead and keep in the fridge, it gets better the next day. Next time I'm thinkin a little bit of garlic would be nice .....This is great as a veggie dip as well!
