Lemon/Lime Cucumber-Dill Salad
Monday, May 21st, 2012Cucumbers coupled with dill are a summer favorite of mine. But since I am not a huge fan of vinegar, except maybe umeboshi plum vinegar, I decided to try lemons & limes for the base. But I do love dill! So I bought a “bouquet”of dill and chopped it up for the salad. (I actually put the dill in a vase of water on my kitchen table, so I really did make it look like a bouquet.)
According to http://health.learninginfo.org/nutrition-facts/cucumber.htm, the cucumber is a good source of Vitamins A & C and the minerals potassium, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, and folate, as well as containing good-for-us fiber. While perhaps not so nutritious as other fruits & veggies, cucumbers contain sterol compounds, shown to reduce cholesterol in animals.
Since the heaviest concentration of sterols is in the skin, I would recommend buying organic cukes and leaving on all of the skin, or at least some if it, as I have done in the recipe below. Cucumbers are also considered good for the digestive tract, specifically as a cleansing effect on the bowels.
Best of all, cucumbers are low in calories and therefore a perfect food for dieters. (1/2 cup= 8 calories) So don’t be afraid to indulge in this salad for the holiday week-end coming up and all summer long.
Utensils: Cutting board & knife, salad bowl
Prep. Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: None!
Categories: Vegan, Gluten free, Sugar Free
Ingredients
one large (or 2 small) organic cucumber, washed
2-3 slices of red onion
juice of one lemon and 1/2 lime (or any combo of the two)
1/4 cup chopped dill leaves
salt & Pepper or low sodium tamari to taste (Tamari is gluten-free)
sesame seeds (optional)
Directions
1. Once the cuke is washed well, use a vegetable peeler to remove skin, partially, by making stripes along the cuke, vertically, spacing the peeling as equally as possible. Then slice thinly. (See photo.)
2. On a large cucumber, the rings may be too large to manage, so I cut through the entire sliced cucumber down the middle. (If you are using 2 small ones, you may skip this step.)
3. Place the cut and sliced cucumber in a medium-sized bowl. Add slices of red onion and dill. Then add the lemon/lime juice* and salt & pepper (or a couple dashes of tamari) and toss.
4. Chill for a few minutes before serving. Sprinkle with sesame seeds for garnish, if you wish.
*Note: My lemon was not very juicy, so I added 1 tbl. water to the bowl.
