Adventures In Veggie Appreciation
During the heat of the summer, I find it hard to eat. This is always an odd sensation, since at most times, I like eating above most other pleasures. But in the sticky heat of a Pacific Northwest summer, food is unappealing and, if I manage to eat a normal meal, heavy in my stomach. But. Humans still gotta eat.
Fortunately, I read a lot of recipe blogs and summer salads are thick on the ground. The salad I wish to discuss today was adapted from one I first saw on the SmittenKitchen blog. A mixture of summer veggies, it’s utterly delicious. I did not know I liked feta cheese until I tried this recipe.
I’m going to discuss this as a method, rather than a recipe. I take my favorite veggie combo of cucumber (take the seeds out), green pepper (definitely take the seeds out!), and sweet cherry tomatoes, chop them all up into a bowl, add salt and pepper to taste (and maybe a dash of oregano, if you want to really lean into the Greek flavor), then add the juice of a lemon and some rich olive oil. Top it off with some feta cheese, and you have a salad that makes a lovely meal. It’s not at all heavy, the flavors are bright and fresh and delicious, and it’s sufficiently substantial that you feel completely satisfied after eating it. In the heat of summer, I sometimes have this salad twice a day.
When I made this for the blog, I made enough for one meal for myself. This meant about 5 oz cherry tomatoes cut in half, half a green pepper seeded and diced, half a cucumber seeded and diced, the juice of half a lemon, a couple tablespoons of virgin olive oil, some salt, pepper and oregano, and some thick slices of feta on the top. I broke up the feta cheese when I stirred it all together. And best of all, I still had enough tomatoes, pepper, cucumber, and feta to make myself another salad the next day. Life is good!
This salad does not store well, because the lemon juice immediately starts breaking the veggies down (especially the cucumber), so it needs to be eaten right after it’s made. If you wanted to try making it ahead, you could chop all the veggies and keep them in a covered bowl in the fridge for a day or so. But don’t add the lemon, olive oil, feta, or seasonings until you’re ready to serve.
The salad also lends itself to variations, although if you’re aiming for a Greek flavor profile, you’ll want to keep everything I’ve listed above. You could also add some thinly sliced onions, for some extra bite. The oregano is optional but yummy. For those who like Kalamata olives, a few of those chopped into the salad would be delightful. And if you wanted to use feta crumbles instead of chunks of sliced feta, you could certainly do that. That crumbled feta that you get that has the “Mediterranean seasoning” in it would be a lovely addition.
I know it’s not quite summer yet but it’s 70º here today and I just feel the need to be prepared for the heat. Also, I’ll be planting my own tomatoes and peppers next week in the EarthBox garden and I need to be ready for the vegetable bounty I’m going to reap.
