Tag Archives: cucumbers

Crispy Pickles

Crispy PicklesWe got pickling cucumbers again this week. (Would like salad cucumber, please!) I decided to try some refrigerator pickles to serve with hamburgers, and to eat as a snack. I used Serious Eats method for quick pickling, and it worked really well! I experimented by using Splenda instead of sugar; this did not seem to make a difference.

Crispy Pickles
Recipe type: Side, Snack
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
 
Ingredients
  • 4 medium pickling cucumbers (I probably could have pickled a few more with the same amount of brine.)
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 2 cups white vinegar
  • 2 cups water
  • ¼ cup Splenda
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 tablespoon fennel seed
Instructions
  1. Wash cucumbers and slice. (I sliced mine into chips so I could put on hamburgers). Place in a colander and sprinkle with salt. Let sit for about 30 minutes. Rinse and allow to drain.
  2. Combine remaining ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil.
  3. Place drained cucumbers in a heat proof bowl. Pour brine over. Leave uncovered at room temperature until cool. Then refrigerate (covered) for at least 24 hours before eating.

I put my leftovers into a smaller container and covered with some of the brine.

Happy eating!

Ruth

Blueberry Quinoa Salad

Until we got blueberries in our box this week, we had not received fruit for a while. Usually, we just eat the fruits we get, but I wanted to actually make something with the blueberries. I didn’t want anything too sweet, so I decided to try making a cold quinoa salad. I ended up using some of the cucumbers, too.

Blueberry Quinoa Salad
Recipe type: Salad
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4-6
 
Ingredients
  • 2 cups cooked quinoa, cooled
  • ½ pint blueberries
  • ½ cup chopped cucumber
  • ⅓ cup chopped walnuts, toasted
  • ¾ cup crumbled feta cheese
Instructions
  1. Combine all ingredients, mix well. Cook time is for cooking the quinoa, there is no additional cooking required.

I think I’m going to try eating the leftovers for breakfast tomorrow-a nice combination of sweet berries and savory feta cheese.

Happy eating!

Ruth

What to do with Pickling Cucumbers

Cucumber and Napa Cabbage with Dill DressingWe got 5 little pickling cucumber in our box this week. They weren’t enough to turn into pickles. (That is too much work, plus I had no time.) I started looking for a recipe for some kind of quick pickle, and came upon this recipe from The Shiksa in the Kitchen for Crunchy Pickled Salad. I had never heard of the cucumbers she used, but decided my pickling cucumbers would work fine. I also used about half of the Napa cabbage from our box. I decided to try a different dressing, and found one on allrecipes.com for a Lemon Dill Salad Dressing. As I was dressing the salad, I realized that I had gotten pretty far away from pickles, but the salad was good, anyway. (Since I didn’t make any adjustments to the originals, I am not going to post my actual recipes. Feel free to follow the links to the original authors!)

Happy eating!

Ruth

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Grilled Chicken SaladToday is my Mom’s birthday. She taught me a lot about cooking when I was younger, and still makes the world’s best chocolate chip cookies! Since she lives in Wisconsin and we live in Albuquerque, I don’t get to spend as much time with her as I wish I could.

No recipe today, just a picture of a yummy chicken salad I made recently. We got spring mix lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and radishes in our box this week. I used this recipe from allrecipes.com to marinate the chicken, in only 15 minutes.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Ruth

 

Simple Melon and Cucumber Salad

simple melon and cucumber saladOur son is still home from his Navy school, and I am still trying to get him to eat better. Hope this translates into better eating when he goes back! I was grilling a steak tonight, and wanted a simple, quick side dish to throw together after work. This salad definitely fit the bill! My husband described it as a good combination of sweet and sour. It is very low calorie, too.

Simple Melon and Cucumber Salad
Recipe type: Salad
Prep time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 2 cups cubed watermelon, seeds removed
  • 2 small cucumbers, peeled and sliced
  • 1 cup strawberries, quartered
  • ¼ cup white wine vinegar
  • ¼ cup olive oil
Instructions
  1. Combine watermelon, cucumbers and strawberries.
  2. Whisk olive oil into vinegar.
  3. Pour dressing over salad and toss.

Happy eating!

Ruth