Salad in a Jar

Found this on Facebook the other day.  It's a fun and functional way to prepare several salads for yourself during the week.  You can find delicious homegrown tomatoes and cucumbers at Country Harvest Greenhouse June through September.


Needed: Mason Jars with 2-part lids and bands, which provide a vacuum seal when closed tightly, preserving the salad items better.  Choose either a pint or quart jar, depending on the size of salad you'd like to make.

Ingredients/Arranging Your Jars:
Place the following in the jar in order from BOTTOM to TOP:

Dressing
Shredded carrots
Cherry tomatoes
Chopped cucumbers
Sunflower seeds
Hard boiled eggs
Baby spinach

Store in fridge for a few days, but no more than a week.  When ready to eat: shake jar, place on a plate, and eat!

Ingredients are endless - red onion, radishes, peppers, romanie, argula, etc. Just remember to put the dressing at the bottom and the lettuce at the top -- keeps the salad from getting soggy.

Image and recipe source: shared on Facebook by Hillbilly Recipes

Marinated Cucumbers, Onions, and Tomatoes

A healthy and tasty side dish.  If you don't have a garden full of veggies, we've got fantastic homegrown tomatoes and cucumbers at Country Harvest Greenhouse June through September!

Ingredients:
3 medium cucumbers, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 medium onion, sliced and separated into rings
3 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup water
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon fresh coarse ground black pepper
1/4 cup oil

 

Directions:

Combine ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving

 

Recipe and Image Source: Natural Weight Loss Friends

Tomato Caprese Two Ways

Many thanks to my fantastic sister, Heidi, for sharing these simple and delicious recipes! 

May through September you can find homegrown tomatoes at Country Harvest Greenhouse.

CAPRESE SALAD
Makes a wonderful light dinner or a nice side dish.

Ingredients:
Large slicing tomato(es)
Basil leaves
Fresh mozzarella
Balsamic vinegar
Kosher sea salt
Olive oil

Directions:

Prep: Wash and pat dry your tomatoes and basil.  Slice tomatoes and fresh mozzarella to similar thickness.  Chiffonade the basil.

To assemble, layer tomatoes and mozzerella on a plate or platter.  Sprinkle the basil on top.  Sprinkle on sea salt to taste, then drizzle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil.



CAPRESE PARTY BITES
These tasty little skewers -- meant to eat all in one bite -- are always a fresh and flavorful hit at parties.

Ingredients:
Cherry or Grape Tomatoes
Basil Leaves
Fresh Mozzarella
Balsamic Vinegar
Kosher Sea Salt
Olive Oil
Long toothpicks or short skewers

*Note: Quantities of each ingredient depend on the number of skewers you want to make.  You will need equal parts of each, unless you'd like to go crazy and mix up the recipe a little.

Directions:

Prep: Wash and pat dry your tomatoes and basil.  Cube fresh mozzarella to similar size as your tomatoes.

Next, chop off the end of each tomato.  You're just looking to provide a flat surface so that the little skewers will stand upright on your platter when you serve them.

To assemble, first place a mozzeralla cube, then a basil leaf, and end with the tomato, with flat side facing away from the basil leaf.

Sprinkle with sea salt, then drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.