Tomato Cucumber Salad

Tomatoes are here....finally! Everything is ripe and ready for the picking and I couldn't be more excited. I'm like a kid in the candy store during this time of the year, so says my husband. I wait all winter for that first taste of a vine ripened tomato and when it arrives- life couldn't be more sweet.

I was at the farm earlier this week and mom and I were busy in the kitchen cooking dinner and I told her I would make the salad. We had just come up from picking produce from the massive garden my parents grow each year.

Grabbed a bowl and started throwing in a few Cherokee Purple Tomatoes, cucumbers, onions and some seasonings. What was created was my ultimate favorite summer salad- made with truly fresh and local ingredients- straight from my family's farm. (Ahhh, life is so sweet!)

If you've never eaten a tomato cucumber salad, you're missing out. I would make a dinner out of this salad last summer, while pregnant with our son Caston. And, the best part is this is a healthy meal you can feel good about.

Be sure and stop in at the farmers' market to pick up your ingredients. Try and choose small cucumbers- as they are so much tastier when picked young. Enjoy!

Tomato Cucumber Salad

by Lane

3 small cucumbers, sliced

2 -3 medium tomatoes, cut in chunks
1 med. red onion, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced in rings
1/4 c. oil
1/4 c. vinegar
2 tbsp. sugar

Dash of pepper
1/2 cup feta cheese, optional
1/2 tsp. basil
1 tsp. garlic, minced

Combine all ingredients and chill. Serve cold.