Cucumber Salad      by Ali Williams         2011.06.04

Cooking has been an enjoyable pastime of mine for years. Collecting cookbooks was a hobby, with over 100 in my collection.

When I began sharing evening meals with a friend, I was looking forward to cooking. Both of us are allergic to wheat and sugar and limit our dairy and red meat intake. His list of offending foods is much longer, including many seasonings and most prepackaged foods.

For awhile, we ate steamed, fresh vegetables, chicken, turkey, fish, beef, and fruit. The list is limited and the repetition got boring, especially for my friend.

“How can I create a dish that meets his dietary needs, yet is uniquely flavorful?” I wondered. It had to have just a little zip, a little zest. But, not too exciting. Cucumbers served as the base. As it turned out, it was better when I scooped out the seeds and sliced it thinly.

Carefully researching his food list, I selected vegetables and herbs that were fresh and interesting to the palate.

My satisfaction was watching him gobble several large bowls of salad and stating, “This is going to become a staple.” Hearing him thank me for his custom salad creation was reward enough.

Here’s what we came up with.

Cucumber Tomato Salad       Serves 6

5 Cucumbers peeled, seeded & sliced

3-4 large, ripe tomatoes cubed

1 red, yellow, orange or green pepper chopped

4-5 ribs celery sliced

2 cans Lindsay black olives halved or sliced

1/8 to ¼ cup fresh parsley chopped

2 Tablespoons fresh sweet basil chopped (can use dried)

4 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1/2 to 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Mix all together and chill. Serve with crumbled Feta cheese and walnuts, if desired.

Moral of the Story:  There’s more than one way to slice a cucumber.