Picnic perfect! A garden salad with fresh borlotti or cranberry beans, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers goes great with everything from fish to grilled meats or eaten by itself with toasty bread & a wedge of pecorino (sheep’s milk cheese).
(All the produce for this salad is grown in our organic farm with homemade red wine vinegar.)
Ingredients
2 cups fresh borlotti or cranberry beans
couple of handfuls of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 medium red onion, sliced thinly
1 cucumber, peeled & sliced
fresh herbs of your choice, chopped: marjoram, oregano or basil work well
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
9 tablespoons extra virgin olive
salt pepper
vegetable scraps
Preparation
1. In a pot with plenty of water, bring the beans to a boil with vegetable scraps: the bits from the fridge such as celery tops, the bendable carrot destined for the garbage, half an onion sitting in your fridge that doesn’t look so great – toss it in! (The veggies give the beans a bit more flavor.)
2. Bring to boil then lower to simmer 20-30 minutes until the beans are tender.
3. Drain & discard the vegetables.
4. In a bowl combine the beans, tomatoes, onion, cucumber. Add in the herbs.
5. Combine the oil & vinegar then toss with the salad.
6. Season with salt & pepper.
7. Let stand 10-15 minutes to let the flavors come together. Recheck your seasonings (taste it) and adjust.
8. Serve.
Credit: Foodista