A Life, Lived

Marinated Cucumber, Tomato and Onion Salad

Versions of this salad have been in regular rotation this summer. Quick to make and packing a ton of flavour salads like this are best when there is a ready supply of fresh from the garden produce. They are flexible and you can play around with the herbs added. Although this recipe calls for dried herbs you can just as easily use fresh although you'd want to triple the amount.

Enjoy

Marinated Cucumber, Tomato and Onion Salad

3 medium cucumbers peeled and sliced ¼ inch thick (sliced about 4 cups)
1 medium white onion sliced and separated into thicker rings
3 medium tomatoes largely chopped
½ cup vinegar of your choice
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
2 teaspoons< salt
½ teaspoon Black Coarse Pepper or to taste
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (I used olive oil)
½ teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon dried parsley

Combine ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.

Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

Serve with the liquid (I usually drain most of the liquid off) or without, either way, it’ll taste delicious as all the veggies are marinated thoroughly.

Cucumber Salad with Sour Cream

When I was a wee Jerry I spent a lot of time over the summer holidays at my grandparents. Mom was a teacher and often was taking courses. Dad worked. Having grandparents nearby ensured a spot for us to stay so mom and dad didn't need childcare.

Both grandparents had extensive gardens and fruit trees. Both grandmothers were busy in the summer months with canning, jamming, and freezing to ensure food throughout the colder Canadian months. I suspect it was helping them out in these activities that got them in my blood.

This was in the days before air conditioning. An oscillating fan in the living room was about as much cooling as there was. 

Needless to say that when it came to cooking in the hot summer they kept things pretty simple.

My one grandmother always had a cucumber or tomato salad. When the cucumbers started to come on in the garden I decided to make a cucumber salad. This recipe, with dill and a creamy dressing reminded me of dinners at Grandma DeQuetteville's so i decided to try it out.

It is a quick and simple recipe that tastes GREAT! Memories of those early days came flooding back (well, as much memories as my errant youth and approaching old age allow me to have, LOL)

Enjoy.

Cucumber Salad with Sour Cream

1/2 cup sour cream
teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dill weed (I suspect this means dry dill, I was using fresh so I increased the amount)
4 medium cucumbers, sliced (note, I peeled the cucumbers)

In a large bowl, combine sour cream, sugar, vinegar, salt and dill. Add cucumbers; toss to coat. Chill for at least 30 minutes.

Grilled Cesar Salad

If you're a fan of the classic Caesar salad, you will fall in love with this version that's easy enough to make on a busy weeknight and elevated enough to wow guests at a dinner party table.

To make it, grill halved lemons and a head of romaine alongside thick-cut pieces of baguette. The dressing, made with a Dijon mustard base, zippy olive oil and fresh garlic, is creamy. The romaine and lemons get a deeper flavor on the grill.

This salad is a great dish to serve with a grilled steak - which is what we did on Saturday.

Now, before you look at the pics and say 'he didn't follow the recipe with all of that bread . . .' settle down. I was also grilling some bread to use in bruschetta.

Grilled Cesar Salad

3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
lemons, halved, plus 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for grilling
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 hearts romaine lettuce, cut in half lengthwise
Three 3/4-inch slices rustic bread, such as levain or baguette
1 tablespoon sugar

Preheat a grill to medium-high heat.

In a bowl, add the mayonnaise, Worcestershire, lemon juice, mustard, vinegar and garlic and whisk until combined. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Add the Parmesan and continue to whisk. Season the dressing with salt and pepper.

Drizzle olive oil on the romaine hearts and season with salt and pepper. Place the romaine cut-side down on the grill and cook until nicely marked, 2 to 3 minutes. Brush the bread slices with olive oil and place on the grill. Cook until grill marks appear on both sides and the bread is crispy, about 5 minutes.

Spread the sugar out on a small plate. Dip the cut sides of the lemons into the sugar. Place the lemon halves on the grill and cook until slightly charred and grill marked, 2 to 3 minutes.

Cut the bread into bite-sized pieces. Place the romaine hearts, croutons and lemons on a wooden board and serve with the Caesar dressing.

Macaroni Salad

We all need a good classic macaroni salad in our back pocket. One that we can always bring to backyard BBQs and potlucks. Even better if it is one you can also make up to 2 days in advance.

But most importantly, we need it to be creamy. We need it to have tons of veggies. And we need plenty of extra-sharp cheddar cheese. Keyword being plenty.

So that’s what we have here. We have the four very important elements right in this classic macaroni salad (make-ahead, creamy, veggie-loaded, and abundance of cheese).

It’s quick, simple and delicious!

Enjoy.

Macaroni Salad

2 cups elbow macaroni
3/4 cup frozen peas
2 large eggs
2/3 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/3 cup diced red onion
2 celery ribs, diced
3/4 cup diced extra-sharp cheddar cheese
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions. Stir in peas during the last 1 minute of cooking time; drain well and rinse with cold water.

Place eggs in a large saucepan and cover with cold water by 1 inch. Bring to a boil and cook for 1 minute. Cover eggs with a tight-fitting lid and remove from heat; set aside for 8-10 minutes. Drain well and let cool before peeling and dicing.

In a large bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, parsley, vinegar and Dijon. Stir in pasta, peas, eggs, bell pepper, onion, celery and cheese; season with salt and pepper, to taste.

over; place into the refrigerator for 2 hours or up to 2 days.

Serve cold

Thai Cucumber Salad

Lately we've been receiving a large English cucumber in our CSA shipment every week. While we love cucumber we haven't been able to eat them all up so they were taking over the fridge. I decided to make this salad to try and put a dint in the supply.

I'm going to confess that this salad surprised me. It was bloody amazing. It blew my expectations out of the water. We both loved the flavours and textures - funny how simple ingredients when combined properly can make your taste buds tingle (in a good way).

Even better, it was quick and easy to make. Win, win!

Enjoy.

Thai Cucumber Salad

½ red onion, very thinly sliced
2 large English cucumbers, halved lengthwise, seeded and sliced crosswise ¼-inch thick
⅓ cup packed chopped fresh cilantro
½ cup salted peanuts
1 large jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced (or use 1-2 Thai chiles for more heat)
¼ teaspoon salt (optional - we did not add this)
¼ cup fresh lime juice, from 2-3 limes
2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
1½ tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
1 garlic clove, minced

In a large bowl, combine the drained red onions, cucumbers, cilantro, peanuts and jalapeño pepper. Set aside.

Make the dressing: combine the lime juice, oil, fish sauce, sugar and garlic in a small bowl and whisk until the sugar dissolves. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Taste and add salt if necessary. Serve the salad within 30 minutes.

Dilled Cucumber and Tomato Salad

On Sunday I stopped by the garden plot for the first time in 10 days. I assumed there would be nothing there since we had abandoned it to go to the cottage . . . surely the critters treating it as an all-you-can-eat buffet would have gone wild?

They hadn't and this was what I brought home:

When planning the menu for the week I was looking for a way to use up those tomatoes.

I found this recipe on the Betty Crocker website. I reminded me a bit of a cucumber salad I made last year but this one used rice vinegar. Rice vinegar is less acidic than regular vinegars so i was curious to see how this would taste.

It was delicious! Even though this serves 8 we ate three quarters of it for dinner. LOL

This salad is perfect for a hot summer's night. Even better it comes together quickly - just make sure that you leave the time needed for the marinating.

Enjoy!

Dilled Cucumber and Tomato Salad

4 medium tomatoes, each cut into 8 wedges (about 3 cups)
2 medium cucumbers, thinly sliced (about 5 cups)
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup rice vinegar
4 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt

In large glass serving bowl, mix tomatoes, cucumbers and onion.

In small bowl, mix all remaining ingredients until blended. Pour vinegar mixture over vegetables; toss to mix. Cover; refrigerate 1 hour to blend flavors. Toss again just before serving. Serve with slotted spoon.

Italian Pasta Salad with Homemade Italian Dressing

This is a great salad to bring out for a crowd in the summer. It comes together relatively quickly, tastes amazing, and well, feeds a crowd! I made this for dinner on Friday and we've been eating the leftovers for four days now.

Most of the pasta salads that I have tried have a mayonnaise based dressing making them somewhat iffy for a summer dish - especially if you want to bring it to an outdoor gathering. This would be a perfect salad to bring to the next BBQ you're invited to - now that people are finally inviting one another to BBQs and stuff.

This is one of those forgiving recipes. I had two types of olives in the refrigerator so I threw both in. You could add some sun dried tomatoes. I'm regretting not adding some diced zucchini (since the garden plot is giving me lots of them!). You get the picture.

You might want to consider doubling the dressing. It really tastes great and there are plenty of other uses I can think of for it.

Enjoy!

Italian Pasta Salad with Homemade Italian Dressing

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 tbsp sugar
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp each dried basil and oregano
1/4 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes (red pepper flakes) (optional)
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

300g spiral pasta, or other pasta of choice (I used large shells)
180g/6oz thick sliced salami, cut into 2.5cm/1" batons (I use spicy salami)
200g baby bocconcini, halved
1 red pepper, cut into 3cm/2.2cm strips (note - this salad would be good with roasted red pepper as well)
250g whole olives
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup (tightly packed) fresh basil leaves

Place Dressing ingredients in a jar and shake well.

Cook pasta according to packet directions minus 1 minute. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold water to stop it cooking further. Shake excess water off well then transfer into large bowl.

Place remaining Pasta Salad ingredients in the bowl. Drizzle over Dressing and toss. Serve at room temperature.

Marinated Vegetable Salad

I had cauliflower, broccoli, and carrots in the refrigerator that needed to be eaten. I turned to Google for inspiration and this marinated vegetable salad came up.

A good, old-fashioned Marinated Vegetable Salad is a classic dish that will never go out of style. It is one of those salads that appears like clockwork in the summer, often served at picnics and cookouts alongside grilled meats. It is the perfect complement to those dishes and just perks up the whole situation with beautiful colour and fresh taste.

I made a couple of changes to the recipe. It calls for mushrooms but I didn't have any so I left them out. It calls for red peppers and you guessed it - I didn't have any. Instead I used some of those pickled tear drop peppers that I had in the refrigerator. They added a delicious hit of flavour so I think I'd use them again on purpose in the future.

Enjoy!

Marinated Vegetable Salad

3 cups broccoli florets
2 cups cauliflower florets
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/4" rounds
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 cup thinly sliced sweet yellow onion
1 heaping cup halved cherry tomatoes
1 8 ounce package mushrooms, quartered
1/4 cup grated or shaved Parmesan cheese
Dressing
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Combine dressing ingredients in a mason jar or small container with a lid and shake well. Refrigerate while you prepare the salad.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Fill a large bowl about halfway with water and then fill with ice.

Place broccoli and cauliflower into the pot of vigorously boiling water and allow to boil for 2 minutes. Quickly drain and transfer to the bowl of ice water. Once vegetables are completely chilled, transfer to a colander to drain well. Pour off some of the water from bowl and replace with fresh ice. Repeat process with carrots, cooking about 3 minutes.

Combine all the vegetables in a large mixing bowl and toss with the dressing. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours or overnight. When ready to serve, stir in Parmesan cheese.

Zucchini Salad with Feta and Tomatoes

The other day I was cleaning out the refrigerator in the basement and found a treasure trove of zucchini and tomatoes that needed to be used up. I turned to Google for a solution and this salad popped up.

Funny, I have a ginormous bookcase full of cookbooks but I didn't look there . . . I never seem to look there . . . does anyone under the age of 60 use cookbooks any longer?

Now that I have gotten the blood boiling for some folks, time to move on . . .

This salad is best made with young, small zucchini. Happily that is just what I had.

The salad calls for basil - ours is still  a bit too young to be cutting the leaves off of it and I didn't want to buy some and throw half of it out so I used the dill which I had in the refrigerator.

Salads don't often improve with age. This certainly isn't one. Zucchini releases a lot of water and this process waters down the flavours. I'd suggest throwing this together close to when you want to serve it and using any leftovers up the next day.

Zucchini Salad with Feta and Tomatoes

2 medium zucchini thinly sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
zest of one lemon
juice from one lemon - 3 tablespoons
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil extra for drizzling
2 ounces feta cheese crumbled
Salt and pepper to taste
10 basil leaves rolled and sliced (I used about a tablespoon of finely chopped dill)

Use a sharp knife to slice the zucchini super thin. If you have a mandoline, you can use that.

Add sliced zucchini to a large bowl and toss in sliced tomatoes, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, feta cheese, salt and pepper. Gently mix together.

Finish with lemon zest, fresh basil and an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Serve and enjoy!

 

Easy Cucumber Salad

This really is the perfect summer salad - quick, easy, made with fresh ingredients and tastes great!

This easy cucumber salad consists of nothing more than the cucumbers, some rice vinegar, either dill or basil, and salt and pepper.

You don’t even really need the herbs! Cucumbers are crunchy and cool with just some vinegar, salt, and pepper. But added dill or chopped fresh basil will elevate this simple cucumber salad to something just a bit more interesting.

I like adding a mix of regular basil and Thai basil (the one that tastes somewhat licorice-y).

Cucumbers can vary in their level of bitterness. Usually the older they are, the more bitter they are—and the seeds are often more bitter than the flesh. Once you cut into a cucumber, taste it. Scrape away any bitter seeds or soak the chopped cucumber in salt water to help offset the bitterness.

Easy Cucumber Salad

1 to 2 large cucumbers (or 4 to 5 smaller cucumbers), peeled (if using thick-skinned cucumbers), quartered lengthwise, then sliced crosswise
1 to 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, basil, or Thai basil (see Recipe Note)
2 to 3 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and toss to coat.

Serve this immediately, or make ahead (up to a couple of hours) and chill.