Two Cucumber Salads - Thai Basil and Hungarian Sour Cream

Nothing beats a garden cucumber. I prowl around the garden looking for them like they are gold! They are good at hiding. I find them so much sweeter than the ones we get at the store. A lot of nutrients are situated in and under the skin so eat the peel if you can.

THAI BASIL CUCUMBER SALAD


The recipe is intentionally simple. Optional additions include a bit of soy sauce, hot chile pepper flakes or grated fresh ginger.

Makes 4 x 125 ml servings
1 large cucumber (or 3 smaller garden cucumbers), sliced finely across .. on an angle looks nice
2 Tbsp fresh Thai basil, chopped (or dill or other basil) - 30 ml
3 Tbsp rice vinegar (sugar and sodium free/natural) - 30 ml

Method:
1.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl and toss. Serve immediately, or make ahead (up to a couple of hours) and chill.

NUTRITION FACTS (per half cup/125 ml serving - 80 g): 10 calories, 0 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 1 g carbohydrate, 1 g protein.  %Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet are 2% vitamin A, 4% vitamin C and 2% each calcium and iron.


HUNGARIAN CUCUMBER SALAD
This is a family recipe originally from Mary Szabo, an adopted aunt. My only revision has been to reduce the salt as the original recipe called for a teaspoon and most of us need to hold the salt.

Makes 8 servings x 125 ml each
1 cucumber, medium size, with skin, sliced very thin
1/4 tsp sea salt - 1.25 ml
1 cup each of white wine vinegar and water - 250 ml
1 cup sour cream, 14% MF/full fat - 250 ml
1 tsp Hungarian paprika, sweet, ground - 5 ml
3 green onions, sliced fine - about 1 cup/250 ml

METHOD:
1. This salad is best made with field cucumbers but the English cucs work too. Slice very thinly and add to medium size bowl.
2. Sprinkle with salt and cover with vinegar and water. Wine vinegar is nice but plain old everyday white vinegar works too. Soak for at least 2 hours at room temperature. Drain and discard brine.
3. Mix in sour cream. Sprinkle generously with paprika and garnish with finely sliced green onions or chives.

NUTRITION FACTS (per 125 ml serving): 50 calories, 4 grams of fat, 2.5 g saturated fat, 10 mg cholesterol, 90 mg sodium, 3 g carbohydrate, 1 g fibre, 1 g protein. % Daily Values are 6% each vitamin A and C, 4% calcium 2% iron.

© Nancy Guppy, RD, MHSc
http://nancyguppy.com/

Greek Lentil Salad Vinaigrette (gluten free)

Here is a simple take on Greek salad.  It comes together quickly and can be the hit at your next family or office pot-luck.  The lentils pack a lot of vegetable protein, complex carbohydrate, fibre, potassium, B vitamins and iron.  Substitute any cooked bean of your choice such as chickpeas or a can of mixed beans for the lentils.  I have even made it with cooked wild rice and everyone loved it.  


The original recipe is from Pulse Canada.  Visit their website for lots of good ideas and recipes for cooking and baking with legumes or pulses (=beans, peas and lentils).  Legumes have lots of health benefits.  They point out that  "studies have shown that consuming pulses can benefit people with diabetes. As a good source of complex carbohydrates, pulses have a low glycemic index which means they keep blood sugars from rising too quickly after eating."  They are gluten free too and a great source of iron for people that run low on this vital nutrient.  If you want to learn more about legume nutrition and how-to-cook them visit my earlier post Lesson in Legumes.


Nutrition Tip: Running canned beans/lentils under cold water to rinse and then leaving to drain for a few minutes can reduce the sodium content of canned legumes by as much as 40%. That's pretty good!


INGREDIENTS:

Imperial	Metric Measure	Ingredients
2 cup	500 ml	Lentils, brown, cooked, drained
½ cup	125 ml	Onion, diced
2 cup	500 ml	Tomatoes, fresh, diced
1each	1	Green or red pepper, diced
½	½	Cucumber,  English cut in quarters lengthwise and then sliced (21 cm)
¼ cup	60 ml	Parsley, fresh, minced
2 Tbsp	30 ml	Olive oil, extra virgin
3 Tbsp	45 ml	Lemon juice, fresh squeezed
1 cup	250 ml	Feta, crumbled (about 175 grams)
1 Tbsp	15 ml	Oregano, leaf, dry
½ tsp	2.5 ml	Black pepper, freshly ground

METHOD:

1.  Rinse the canned lentils under cold running water and leave to drain. Alternately, use 2 cups (500 ml) of cooked-from-scratch lentils.  Add to a large bowl.  

2.  Toss in the diced onion, tomatoes, green/red pepper, sliced cucumber and minced fresh parsley.

Here my tomatoes look a little sad.  It is December 2nd and they are the last two I have left from my summer garden.

3.  Pour olive oil and fresh squeezed lemon juice over salad.  Top with crumbled feta and sprinkle with dried oregano and freshly ground black pepper.  I used a crumbled goat's milk feta and both my son and I really liked it.

Toss and adjust seasonings to taste.  You can also use dried thyme or mixed Italian seasoning instead of the oregano.

NUTRITION FACTS (per 1/12th recipe about 1/2 cup - 125 ml - 110 g): 110 calories, 6 g fat, 2.5 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 170 mg sodium, 11 g carbohydrate, 2 g fibre, 3 g sugar and 6 g protein.  %Daily Values are 8% vitamin A, 45% vitamin C, 10% calcium and 10% iron.


Tastefully yours,
Nancy Guppy, RD


Visit me at www.chapmanslanding.com where you can find out what's cooking on my class calendar.  If you are interested in nutrition or diet counselling pop over to www.nancyguppy.com.  A lot of health plans cover the cost of consulting an RD.

Dill Havarti Vegetable Salad

I have been away from my blog for awhile as I have been travelling a lot.... going away on weekends as the weather has been so poor at home that it was more fun to travel! Summer appears to have arrived to Nipissing village on August 11th. A little late but very welcome.

Lately we have been enjoying marinated summer salads using some of my favourite garden ingredients - cucumbers, dill and green onions. Still no tomatoes ready in the garden due to cold and lack of sunshine.... so I have been buying Ontario tomatoes from the south. Pack leftover salad into wraps or containers for tomorrow's work day lunch.

3 cups tomatoes, medium, diced - 750 ml
3 green onions, sliced - about 1 cup/250 ml
2 sweet peppers of your choice (green/red/yellow/orange), diced - about 2 cups/500 ml total
1 cucumber, diced - about 2 cups/500 ml
1/2 cup black olives - 125 ml
1/2 cup dill Havarti, diced - 125 ml

1/4 cup olive oil - 60 ml
1/4 cup red wine vinegar - 60 ml
3 cloves garlic (or more!), minced
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground - 1.25 ml
1/4 cup total fresh minced dill - 60 ml (or 2 tsp dried dill)

Method:
1. Prepare vegetables and toss together in medium bowl. Add black olives and diced dill Havarti and toss again.
2. Mix dressing ingredients and pour over vegetables and toss. Allow to marinate for an hour or two. Serve at room temperature.

Variation: use any fresh herb instead of dill such as basil, marjoram or oregano. You can also use herb firm tofu, feta or another favourite cheese in place of the Havarti.

NUTRITION FACTS (per 1/2 cup - 125 ml serving): 150 calories, 12 grams fat, 6 g saturated fat, 20 mg cholesterol, 160 mg sodium, 4 g carbohydrate, 1 g fibre and 5 g protein. % Daily Values are 20% each vitamin A and calcium with 50% vitamin C and 4% iron. In reality the salad is lower in fat than what's shown here as you don't usually consume all of the dressing in the bowl.

© Nancy Guppy, RD, MHSc

Our next cooking class at Chapman's Landing is "Meal from Oaxaca" Southern Mexican cooking on Saturday August 29th. Please see my menu and register online at http://www.chapmanslanding.com