Friday, September 3, 2010

Cucumber Salad

Don't forget to join Gnee of Singing With Birds and me for our So Long Summer BlogBBQ!!

Can you believe it’s September? For many people September means summer is coming to an end and the kids are back in school. I can’t help but be reminded that the Farmer’s Market ends in a few weeks. We’ve so enjoyed the fresh fruits and vegetables from our garden and the Farmer’s Market.

I’ve never done much with cucumbers except slice them or use them in a green salad. When I saw this recipe on Always Order Dessert, I couldn’t wait to give it a try. The only changes I made were to use basil instead of cilantro and to add some leftover quinoa. This is a delicious fresh summer salad. The colors are beautiful and the flavors are so clean, a pefect salad for an end of summer BBQ!




Cucumber Chickpea Salad

2 cans chickpeas, rinsed
2 large cucumbers, diced into 1/2" cubes
1 bunch cilantro, stems removed, leaves chopped finely
1/2 small red onion, diced
3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Zest and juice of 1 large lemon
1 teaspoon Apple Cider or Red Wine Vinegar
1 teaspoon Kosher salt (more to taste)
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

In a large bowl, combine the rinsed chickpeas, diced cucumber, cilantro, and red onion. In a separate bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon zest and juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Add the dressing to the chickpea mixture and toss to coat. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary (depending on how much juice your lemon had, you may need a bit more vinegar or oil. This can be eaten right away or made up to 24 hours ahead.

I am linking this to Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum.

8 comments:

  1. This sounds great. I just picked up some more quinoa yesterday, so it may be going on the weekend list =)

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  2. That salad looks great! Love the addition of quinoa, I have a package I need to use but haven't yet!

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  3. I have every single ingredient sitting right here with me. I think I will actually whip this up for us for this evening.

    Glad I saw you at The BBQ!

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  4. Julie,

    This salad has all of my favorite things! I'm anxious to try it as my cilantro in the garden is going great guns! So glad we had this fun party together. There are so many yummies to try. Enjoy your holiday with your family!

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  5. This sounds awesome with red wine vinegar! I LOVE chickpeas!

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  6. This salad looks so good. I often make a similar one. I'll try this variation too.

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  7. Cucumber is seriously my favorite vegetable. So I will definitely be making this soon as I always have cucumbers in my fridge. It looks delicious Julie.

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