Heirloom Lemon Cucumber Salad, from round, yellow lemon cucumbers, with lemon dressing is the perfect serving size cucumber for a single salad.
What Are Lemon Cucumbers?
Having received a gift packet of lemon cucumber seeds, I thought it was just a clever name for a cucumber.
It soon became apparent that these bright yellow ‘round’ cucumbers were far more than what their name implied.
These hearty growing cucumbers grow to look just like lemons or yellow tennis balls, but are juicier then regular cucumbers. Smitten from the first one on the vine.
What Do Heirloom Lemon Cucumbers Taste Like?
Sweet and not sour, is what lemon cucumbers taste like. I’m guessing the name for these cucumbers came from their appearance.
From the moment I cut open my first lemon cucumber, plucked off my vines, I knew these had to be an heirloom variety.
Lots of large seeds. We’ve become a nation of seedless, man-handled, genetically modified fruit and veggie consumers. It was nice to see a cucumber much like I remember them, as a kid.
The large seeds are sweet and delicate in texture. Also easy to extract and dry for next year’s garden.
Heirloom Cucumbers
Heirloom fruits or veggies are all about saving a few seeds, from inside the produce, to dry for next year’s planting.
Lemon Cucumbers are considered to be heirloom because they have been produced in this way since about the 1800’s,
I intend to do the same with a few of the gorgeous yellow balls I am plucking off my vines and then eat the rest!
Lemon Cucumber Salad
No, this is not a cucumber salad with lemon squeezed on them, like my Tzatziki cucumber salad is.
Cucumber salad or Cold Cucumber Soup, this summer in my kitchen, is going to be made from these whimsical lemon cucumbers.
From the moment I sliced them, smelled and tasted them, I had to create a salad that would showcase them.
Nothing else in the salad, simply these cucumbers with a few fresh herbs.
Lemon verbena growing in my garden, along with some basil, was the perfect herb combo to accompany the juicy, mild taste of the lemon cucumber.
How To Make Heirloom Lemon Cucumber Salad
Peeling these plump cuties just like I do an apple and slicing them on the round, exposed their beauty the best.
Whisking a dressing of lemon, garlic and olive oil, my most favorite Lemon Salad Dressing, is gently drizzled across the tops.
Fresh herbs are always a must on a homegrown salad! The two varieties of basil I have growing are perfect for color and flavor, while the lemon verbena imparts an extra citrus flavor.
Other Veggie Salads To Love
While I am wild about many salads with Crab or Shrimp in them, even a good Chicken Salad, sometimes we just want a great veggie salad.
Since I love to grow vegetables and herbs in the summertime, or visit farmers markets for things I don’t grow, I’m always creating new salads.
Here are just a few I hope you too will love!
- Caprese Bites – a salad on a stick!
- Summer Corn and Tomato Salad – the flavors of sun ripened corn and tomato with herbs and black beans.
- Beet Endive Salad with Fig Dressing – earthy beets with sweet fig dressing in a two-bite endive leaf. The very same I made in the finale of The Great American Recipe on PBS.
- Potato Salad with Homemade Olive Oil Mayonnaise – of course we love potato salad but this one is the best because I know exactly what is in my mayo! Do you?
Equipment Needed
- Cutting board
- Chopping knife
- Citrus press
- Measuring spoons
- 2 individual serving plates
- Small cup – for mixing the dressing
Ingredients Needed
- Lemon cucumber – I grew mine and they are so easy to grow. My preferred seeds are below.
- Lemon
- Garlic
- Olive oil
- Fresh herbs – basil and/or lemon verbena
- Salt and pepper
Heirloom Lemon Cucumber Salad
Equipment
- Cutting board and knife
- Vegetable peeler
Ingredients
- 1-2 Lemon Cucumbers
- 1 Lemon
- 1 Garlic clove
- 1 tbsp Olive oil
- 2 tbsp Fresh herbs lemon verbena or basil
- Salt and pepper to tast
Instructions
- Gently peel the lemon cucumber, as you would an apple. Slice into thin round pieces. Display on the plate to be served on.
- Thinly slice half of the lemon and place in between the cucumber slices. Squeeze the remaining half of a lemon into a small cup and whisk with olive oil and crushed garlic clove.
- Finely chop the herbs and set aside. Drizzle the lemon mixture across the tops of the sliced cucumbers. Sprinkle salt and pepper as desired. Sprinkle the herbs and serve.
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