Sunday, August 08, 2010

Got Cucumbers?

We do! My contribution is Cucumber Lime Salsa.
Check at the bottom of this post for other recipes. We're putting together a blog party to help with the glut :-). Check back after 8/11/10 for more links.On to the salsa. I attended a party several years back and a variation of this recipe was served. I fell in love with the refreshing, light blend right away, and it is one of our favorite summer dishes. Sometimes we'll have it along with tomato salsa, guacamole, and some hummus and tortilla chips - and that's dinner.

Ingredients:
1 or 2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped onion (I like spring onions, but Vidalia are great too)
1 lime - zest and juice
2 medium cucumbers
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (a smaller amount of flat parsley would probably work if you don't like cilantro)
a couple shakes of tabasco (optional)
crushed garlic (optional)

Add the chopped onion and cilantro to the oil. If using tabasco and/or garlic, mix that in too. Zest lime into the mix. I then cut the lime in half, and pierce each section with a knife to get out lots of juice. Add juice to oil blend.
Peel and core the cucumbers. Chop as finely as possible. I've tried a food processor, but that mushes it up too much for my taste. If you do that, drain it for a 10 -15 minutes.

Mix it all together well.I would say, "chill to blend flavors" and serve with chips, but it doesn't always make it into the fridge around here. We all love it, and it disappears quickly!We are considering dehydrating some cukes to try in dips, facial blends, and even soap later in the year. I'll let you know how that goes.

Becky already has some great cucumber coolers on her blog at
http://birdworms.com/2010/07/24/cucumber-cocktails/
Maryanne has Creamy Cucumber salad on hers:
http://torchsongstudio.blogspot.com/2010/08/cucumber-blog-party.html
From Cindy Jones:
http://sagescript.blogspot.com/2008/09/cucumber-spread-tzatziki.html
Janiece manages to do away with cucumbers AND tomatoes here:
http://swisherhill.wordpress.com/2010/08/08/tomato-cucumber-salad-for-a-lazy-day
Chilled cucumber soup from The Rosemary House:
http://therosemaryhouse.blogspot.com/2010/08/cucumbers-culinary-blogging-party.html
Karen's cucumber dill sauce:
http://www.gardenchick.com/garden-blog/2010/08/cucumber-blog-party.html
Beth's cucumber and watermelon salad:
http://soapandgarden.blogspot.com/2010/08/cucumbers-cucumbers.html

6 comments:

SunRose112@aol.com said...

seriously, you make everything so easy to follow. I love the photo journey and how it should look ..

thanks for posting this .!!
Roe

Anonymous said...

JUST what I needed! Thank you! We have had an OVER-abundance of cuces this year ;-)

MommySetFree said...

Here is a recipe I just posted last week if you would like to add it. (Love your blog!) (We just moved from Leola to TN 9 months ago. I found your blog after we moved to TN. Go figure.) :-)

http://homeshalom.blogspot.com/2010/07/mommas-melon-mint-salad.html

Renèe said...

Hi there! I recently stumbled upon your site & fell in love!! Since I have some cucumbers fresh from the garden, I ran to the store (OK, so I actually drove...LOL) & got a couple of the other ingredients so that I can make this to serve with some chipotle pork chops tonight! :)

Thanks for this recipe! :)

Anonymous said...

I find that I can use a large-holed grater to shred the cucumber. I then chop the shreds with a knife. It makes quick work of finely chopping the cukes. Thanks for the recipe!

Chili head said...

I find that I can use a large-holed grater to shred the cucumber. I then chop the shreds with a knife. It makes quick work of finely chopping the cukes. Thanks for the recipe!