Cucumber Recipes

It’s National Farmers Market Week and we are celebrating with recipes using cucumbers that Larry Pfarr got at the St. Paul Farmer’s Market! 

Refrigerator Pickles

7 cups thinly sliced cucumbers
1 cup thinly sliced onions
1 cup red or green pepper (optional)
2 cups vinegar
3 cups sugar
2 tablespoons canning salt
2 tablespoons celery seed

Mix vinegar, sugar, salt and celery seed until sugar dissolves.

Pour over cucumbers, onions and peppers.

Cover and refrigerate for 4 days.  

Will keep when refrigerated for up to three months.

Cold cucumber and cilantro soup

1 full cup of cilantro leaves
6 medium cucumbers peeled and cut into pieces.
1½   cups of good chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
1/3   cup lemon juice
½ cup of milk
Kosher salt

Puree everything except salt, then add your salt. Refrigerate for at least a couple of hours to get it good and cold. Refrigerating overnight is even better.   

ASIAN CUCUMBER & CARROT SALAD

½ cup seasoned rice vinegar
2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons olive  oil
1 teaspoon grated peeled ginger
½  teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups sliced carrot
6 tablespoons sliced green onions
3 cucumbers (medium size), halved lengthwise, seeded and sliced

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a salad bowl; stir with a whisk.

Add the carrot, green onions and cucumber. Toss to coat. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.

Cucumber, Mint and Vodka Cocktail

5 cucumbers – medium size
Small ice cubes
1 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice (from 2 to 3 limes)
4 ounces (1/2 cup) vodka
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) Cointreau

Cut 4 thin spears from 1 cucumber, and reserve for garnish. Peel remaining cucumbers, and quarter them lengthwise. Scrape out seeds with a spoon, and discard. Coarsely chop cucumbers, then puree in a food processor until smooth. Strain through a fine sieve, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible.

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add mint, sugar, and lime juice, and shake. Add 3/4 cup cucumber juice, the vodka, and Cointreau, and shake. Strain into 4 glasses filled with ice. Garnish each cocktail with a cucumber spear.

Judy’s Cucumber Salad

8-12 medium cucumbers peeled and sliced.  Some peel can be left on.
1 medium to large onion chopped
3 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
¼ cup sugar
3 tablespoons fresh chopped dill (optional)
3 cups ½ and ½
1¼ cups vinegar

Combine cucumbers, onion, salt, pepper, sugar and dill in large bowl.

Add 1/2 and 1/2 and the vinegar.

Stir.

Adjust to taste with more salt, pepper, vinegar or 1/2 and 1/2.

Refrigerate

Best if made a day in advance.