We are definitely cucumber lovers. They add summer freshness to the table every time. They are available year-round but during the summer when the fresh cucumbers off the vine are available is the absolute best time to enjoy them. These are 4 of our favourite summer cucumber recipes. Our vines are full and ready to be picked. YUM! We hope you enjoy them.
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What type of cucumbers are best for making salads?
Knowing the types of cucumbers and how to use them in your salads and garnishes. Generally, there are three or four types that are commonly available in your local supermarket.
- English Cucumbers– These are long and skinny and usually have a dark skin colour. They are seedless or have very tiny seeds.
- Pickling or Kirby Cucumbers – The pickling cucumber is usually short, and always has bumpy skin. This variety is crunchy and is not only good for pickling but works great in many salads.
Garden or slicing cucumbers – These are commonly found in grocery stores year-round. They are usually smooth and dark-skinned and have wax on the skin. These cucumbers tend to have big seeds and the skin is bitter tasting
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Mini-seedless cucumbers– These usually have smooth skin, seedless or very small seed, and not very big around. They are often sold, packaged in cellophane in a multi-pack.
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Greek Cucumber and Tomato Salad Recipe
This Greek-style cucumber and tomato salad is a perfect accompaniment to any summer meal. Paired with steak, baked potato and a fresh glass of lemonade is the perfect summertime meal.
We used pickling cucumbers in our recipe, but any fresh crisp cucumber will work well in this recipe. We also used grape tomatoes, but again if you don’t have them a chopped Roma tomato will work well.
Greek Cucumber and Tomato Salad
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups cucumber, chopped
- 1 1/2 cup grape tomatoes ,
- 1/2 Green bell pepper (optional)
- 1/2 cup Feta chesse,
- 1/3 cup Black olives, sliced
- 1/2 cup Greek dressing with feta
Instructions
- Slice grape tomatoes in half and place into a medium sized mixing bowl.
- Add chopped cucumbers to the bowl of tomatoes
- Chop green pepper and add to the tomatoes and cucumbers.
- Add sliced olives to the bowl.
- Pour the dressing over the vegetables and stir thoroughly until well mixed.
- Cut the feta cheese into small cubes about 1/2 inch cubes. Add to mixed vegetables
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.
- Gently stir, taking care not to crumble the feta too much.
Nutritional Values for Greek Cucumber and Tomato Salad Recipe
Salad.
Sweet Spiralized Cucumber Salad
This recipe uses white balsamic vinegar, which is light and has a milder flavour than regular dark balsamic vinegar. It is made from a white grape and the process of pressure cooking that is used prevents it from going dark. It can be used in salad dressings or in recipes involving roasting vegetables. This delicious vinegar is a great addition to your pantry.
Spiralizing the cucumbers results in a thinner slice and allows for more coverage of the vinegar. Spiralizing also gives your dish a more formal look. You could add thin slices of a white sweet onion if desired.
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Recipe for Sweet Spiralized Cucumber Salad
Sweet Spiralized Cucumber Salad
Equipment
- spiralizer
Ingredients
- 1 english cucumber
- 1/2 cup White balsamic Vinegar
Instructions
- Using a spiralizer, spiralize the cucumber and place into a small mixing bowl.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1/2 hour before serving.
- Serve chilled.
- Add vingeraor to the cucmber and mix well until the cucumber spirals are fully coated,.
Nutritional Values for Sweet Spiralized Cucumber Salad.
Garden Fresh Pico De Gallo
We use this Pico De Gallo recipe on toasted baguettes or as salsa. The jalapeno peppers are optional since they can be pretty hot for anyone not liking the heat. This recipe is best if it’s left to marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 mins to an hour before serving The marinating process gives the flavours a chance to blend with each other.
Check out another great Summer recipe for our hero Sized Stuffed Sandwich. It is easy to make and is perfect for a summertime picnic.
Recipe for Garden Fresh Pica De Gallo
Garden Fresh Pico De Gallo
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup chopped Roma tomatoes
- 3/4 cup sliced green onion
- 1 cup chopped cucumber
- 1 tbsp chopped Jalepeno pepper (optional)
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- pinch black pepper
- 1/4 tsp minced garlic
- 3 sprigs Cilantro -chopped if not available use 1 Tbsp Cilanttro stir-in-past)e
Instructions
- Chop or slice vegetables and combine in a medium sized mixing bowl.
- Sprinkle lime juice over vegetables and stir.
- Add garlic, salt, pepper, and cilantro and stir well until thoroughly combined.
- Refrigerate for at least one hour before servineg.
- Prepare a french baguette loaf, by slicing on an angle.
- Place cut bread on a foil lined baking sheet.
- Butter each piece with garlic butter or your favorite garlic spread.
- Bake in 375 ° F oven for 10 minutes or until crispy.
- Top each piece with some of the Pico De Gallo and serve.
Nutritional values for Garden Fresh Pica De Gallo
Stuffed Cucumber Appetizers
These appetizers are a guilt-free option. They are low-calorie and light and tasty. You can use the bacon crumbles or flaked crab as the meat in your filling. If you are making a vegetarian option, chopped sauteed mushrooms are a good substitute.
A melon baller is used in this recipe. It makes removing the center of both boat style and the stand-up cucumbers easy. If you don’t already have one, this is a good option. We have had it for years and it’s reliable and has two scoop sizes (double scoop), which is nice for other recipes.
Recipe for Stuffed Cucumber Appetizers
Stuffed Cucumber Appetizers
Equipment
- melon baller
Ingredients
- 4 Pickling size cucumbers
- 4 oz cream cheese , softened
- 1/3 cup Bacon crumbles
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp Garlic salt
- 1 tbsp Parmesan Cheese
Variation
- 1/2 cup flaked crab meat, chopped. instead of the crumbled bacon Vegetarian option – sauteed chopped mushrooms.
Instructions
- Wash and peel the cucumbers
- Slice the cucumbers lengthwise.
- Using a melon baller, scoop out the inside of the cucumberSet aside..
Filling
- In a small mixing bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and mix well, until thoroughly combined.
- sprinkle a pinch of salt into your cucumbers before filling.Divide filling up between the 8 cucumbers, filling each cucumber boat.
In the recipe above, we have shown both the boat style appetizer and the stand up slicing cucumber style appetizer. Depending on the time of year and what is available in your local grocery store, the small picking style cucumbers may not be available. The boat style contains the refilling using bacon crumbles and the stand-up cucumbers contain the filling using the crab meat variation. Both are equally delicious.
Nutritional Values for Stuffed Cucumber Appetizers
We hope that you will enjoy all or some of these recipes as much as we do. We try to use seasonal produce that is available locally, whenever possible. It’s a great way of supporting local growers.
Thank you for visiting Baker Street Living.
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