Thursday, May 21, 2015

Cucumber and Tomato, a great summer salad

Salads are great in summer time, cool and delicious on a hot day. A great side for barbecue or perfect as a meal on it's own. Cucumber and tomato salad is a particular favorite of mine, there's something about the combination of cucumber, tomatoes and green onions in a simple vinaigrette that just takes your breath away.
Cucumber Tomato Salad with rice, olives and pork souvlaki 
Ingredients
Salad

1/2 english cucumber
2-4 tomatoes
1 bunch green onions
2 tbsps finely chopped parsley
2 tbsps feta cheese

Dressing

1/2 cup olive oil
1/8 cup white wine vinegar (you can use balsamic, malt, red wine, cider or white vinegar if you prefer)
1/4 of a lemon
1 tsp seedy mustard (I used Kozlik's Triple Crunch, but any seedy mustard will work)
1 pinch oregano
1 pinch black pepper

Coarsely chop you tomatoes and cucumber into 3/4 inch chunk as see in the picture above and throw them in a large salad bowl.  Chop you green onions into 1/2 inch lengths, discard the root and add the chopped onions to your salad bowl.   Sprinkle in your finely chopped parsley (I like Italian parsley but any fresh parsley will work) and crumble in your feta cheese.  Toss the salad until everything is thoroughly mixed together.
For the dressing add your vinegar and live oil to a small bowl or measuring cup. Squeeze the juice from 1/4 of a lemon into your oil and vinegar, try to squeeze as much lemon juice as you can from your 1/4 lemon, if any seeds get into your dressing fish them out with a fork. Add your seedy mustard and throw in a pinch each of oregano and black pepper, stir the dressing thoroughly and pour on your salad before the oil and vinegar separate.
Toss the salad again to evenly distribute the dressing. Bonus points if you add bacon bits. Serves 4 as a side or 1 as a main.

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