Last year, the cucumbers I planted on the roof failed miserably. I was pretty convinced that this meant cucumbers are poorly suited to container gardening and was ready to give up on them. But, you know, I already had the seeds, so I went ahead and tried again this year. Only one of the two vines I planted grew, but grow it did! I had really good intentions about training the vine to a trellis, but it seemed to grow in leaps and bounds overnight and it ended up just twisting around our railing. And my tomato bushes. (Nature fight: which plant will win??) As a result, some of the cukes grow outside of the roofdeck over the little uncovered part of the roof, and I have to perform all kinds of gymnastics to get to them. Don't worry mom, it's safe. All this to say I have received an abundance of cucumbers this year, and I've been amazed at how flavorful they are. They have a wonderful green tinge to the flesh. Most of them we've been eating sliced as simple appetizers on the roof with glasses of white wine. I finally saved a few to make this salad, which turned out really nicely and really allows the flavor of fresh summer cucumbers to shine. The concept is essentially a combination of traditional raita and tzatziki. I used Joy of Cooking's tzatziki recipe as a starting point. Makes a great cooling side (especially to tomato pie! Yum!)
Tzatziki Salad
Cucumber plant in the background. Cocktail hour in the foreground.
Slice
2 cucumbers. Peel and seed them if they're firmer/late season- if you're unsure if you need to, take a slice from the middle and bite into it. If you encounter and are bothered by the skin and seeds, then... Skin and seed it (duh.) Put in a medium sized bowl.
Slice
1/4 red onion (optional) and a
large handful of cherry or grape tomatoes (optional... Unless you've recently raided your mother's garden, in which case you really ought to add some.) add to the cukes.
For the sauce, whisk together
1c plain yogurt, 1 large clove garlic (minced), 1T EVOO, 1T red wine vinegar or lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.
Stir in a
small handful of basil leaves (8 or so) and
1-2 sprigs mint, chopt. You could also use dill instead of the basil, or oregano in place of the mint, or omit one of the herbs altogether- just use what you have.
Stir the sauce over the veggies and serve cold.
Serves 4 (as a side).
