Herb and Flower, Tomato and Cucumber Salad

April after planting

The heat is finally taking out the last of the pansies I started with in April.  We have many shady spots in the yard so I can keep pansy’s happy for quite a long time.  But when Illinois gets into patterns of 90-degree heat for days at a time, no amount of water will keep those pansies happy.  So this morning before the humidity rose and I had to turn on the air again, I went out and harvested a fist full of pansy flowers to add to a cucumber and tomato salad.

We have a few tomatoes that are nearing the end of shelf life so tossing with oil and vinegar will keep them fresher and allow me to eat more than I would in a sandwich.  Since today is my day to do all the cooking so the hubby can work on a project, I thought this great salad with a side of grilled chicken leftovers would be a great lunch.

I used a vinegar I made with pansies and violas back in April.  It is a lovely red color and looks great with red tomatoes.  The flowers I used: lavender, sage, oregano, borage, bee balm, calendula, pansy, thyme and some chamomile.

I will share the crockpot chicken stew I created for dinner later.

Herby Tomato and Cucumber Salad

2 medium-sized ripe tomatoes cut in ¾ inch chunks

1 medium onion, cut in ¼ inch chunks’1 medium cucumber cut in ½ inch chunks

8 oz. of mozzarella cheese

3 Tbls olive oil

3 Tbls Herb vinegar (chive, basil, or flower)

1/3 cup chopped fresh herb flowers, oregano, chive, basil or any combo of savory herb flowers.

A few herb flowers for garnish

calendula, sage, thyme. pansy (top lft to rt)
lavender, borage, oregano, chamomile, bee balm (bottom lft to rt)

                                     

Toss together, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, and cheese.  Drizzle with oil and vinegar.  Toss.  Add herb flowers and toss well.  Refrigerate for one hour before serving.  Garnish to with fresh herb flowers.

RECIPE THEME

Each month a theme is chosen and a number of recipes on that theme from my massive archive will be shared.  This year we have 12 new topics, different from the topics of last year.  To find the recipes of last year, check out this recipe link or search the blog with the topic Recipe2018, or Recipe2019 

You can search the monthly theme by looking for the theme keyword in the search box and it will pull up the recipes on that theme as posted, so look at the bottom of the recipe in each posting for the KEYWORD in the () to search for each  month.  All recipes this year will be tagged Recipe2020 so you can find them all.

The themes are:

Feb 2020 - Footbal Tailgate Favorites (AppFeb)

March 2020 - Kabobs (KabobMar)

April 2020 - Brunch (BrunchApr) more in 2021 also

May 2020 - Non-Traditional Pizza (PizzaMay)

June 2020 - Stir Fry Dishes (StirJun)

July 2020 - Salads with no lettuce (SaladJul)

August 2020 - Pickled things (PickleAug)

September 2020 - Quiche (QuicheSep)

October 2020 - Squash Soups (SquashOct)

November 2020 - Pumpkin (again) (PumpNov)

December 2020 - Turkey Recipes (TurkDec)