Friday, July 23, 2010

Cucumber and Peach Salad


An unusual combination of peaches and cucumbers melds well with mint and lime juice for a refreshing summer salad. I adapted this recipe from the Johnson Company's "Right@Home" web site for a cucumber and mango salad. Peaches are almost as sweet as mangoes. And I substituted chives for onions and topped the salad with salmon. Yum-a-lish!

  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 3 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 large peaches cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 1 large cucumber, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • a bunch of chives cut finely
  • 3 Tablespoons thinly sliced fresh mint leaves
  • 1/4 cup sliced mozzarella cheese
  • 3 oz. of Alaskan Salmon
In a small bowl, mix the sugar, cumin, lime juice, salt and olive oil. Set aside. In a medium-size bowl, mix together the peaches, cucumbers, chives and mint. Toss with the dressing and place the salad on a serving platter. Sprinkle with cheese and salmon on top of the salad.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Wild Sumac in Michigan


While riding my bike, I spotted a grove of sumac trees. Not certain if this is the edible variety or poisonous version. I learned recently that Middle Eastern cultures use a type of sumac to flavor some of their food. Michigan has a large population of people of Middle Eastern descent and I have seen people picking the flowers and fruit from these plants.