July 28th Harvest....

tomatoes

cucumbers

zucchini

green beans

onions

garlic

sage & basil

Beat the summer heat with this easy recipe - Sesame Garlic Cucumbers with Green Onion Vermicelli!

For the Sesame Garlic Cucumbers:

1 cucumber
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 tablespoon finely minced garlic
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt

Method:

Cut the cucumber into about 4-5 pieces. Crush the cucumbers with your hands by pushing down on them. You can also use a cleaver or other flat metal object to crush the cucumbers. Crushing the cucumbers gives the dressing more surface area to penetrate, but if you’re into being nice and neat feel free to chop the cucumbers into 1 inch pieces. Put the cucumber pieces in a bowl and sprinkle the 1 teaspoon of salt and toss. Wait about 15-20 minutes for the water to be drawn out and then rinse and drain the cucumbers.
Add the sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic and sugar to the cucumbers and gently toss. Taste and salt if necessary.

For the Green Onion Vermicelli Recipe:
1 bunch of green onions sliced
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 tablespoon finely minced ginger
1 tablespoon finely minced shallot
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
salt to taste
2 bricks of rice vermicelli (or any rice noodle)

Method:
Cook the vermicelli according to the package instructions, drain and cool. Heat the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a small pot on high heat until the oil is shimmery but not smoking. Add the green onions and ginger. Be careful, the oil will bubble and there will be steam! Take the pot of the burner and let cool before adding the soy sauce and sesame oil. Taste and add salt if needed. Toss the vermicelli with the green onion oil. If the noodles are too dry, add a bit more soy sauce. Top with sesame garlic cucumbers and  Enjoy!