Monday, January 27, 2014

Cucumber & Tomato Salad

Back in September, I bought a kitchen gadget for myself as a birthday present.  I thought it would be a neat, useful tool, and would maybe use it every once in a while for fun.  Boy, was I wrong – I use it all the time!  The gadget, called “the Spiralizer,” cuts vegetables into noodles of different thickness, depending on what blade you insert.  This is especially handy, since I’ve been trying to reduce my gluten and processed foods intake.  Now, I can make noodles from cucumbers, potatoes, squash, yam and zucchini – you name it!  It’s something that I’m happy to have, and I’m even happier to be able to share this recipe (as well as others I have planned!) with you. 

The recipe below is a fun alternative to your usual salad.  Using five ingredients, it’s a quick 5 minute (and that’s being generous!) side dish to have with your favorite meal. 

Cucumber and Tomato Salad

INGREDIENTS

1 cucumber (if you are using a spiralizer, create a slice down the middle, but be careful to not half the cucumber)

¾ cup cherry tomatoes, quartered

¼ cup red onions, diced

1 tbsp olive oil

¼ cup feta cheese, crumbled

DIRECTIONS

 Using a knife, create a small slit down the middle of the cucumber.  This will ensure that your noodles are at a reasonable length – otherwise,  you’ll get noodles over a foot long!  Be careful to not go through the entire cucumber.  Hook the cucumber up to the spiralizer, and create your noodles.  If you do not have a spiralizer, you can use a mandolin or a vegetable peeler with a thick setting to slice the cucumber thin, and cut the sliced pieces into long strips.  Set into a large bowl.

Add your cherry tomatoes, red onions, and olive oil.  Toss to combine. 

Sprinkle the feta cheese on top, and serve!

Source: A Peaches & Cream Original!