Saturday, November 8, 2014

Tomato, Avocado, and Cucumber Salad

When you have 4 beautiful Haas avocados, that are still fairly hard...you let it sit outside in a basket, or fruit bowl and wait for two or three days and they will be perfectly at their best, firm, yet soft to make some nice salad with it...if you let it ripen another day or longer; best to make Guacamole out of it. In my case I chose to make a beautiful and healthy salad. Same goes with the plum tomatoes. When you purchase them, and they are firm, but just getting ripe...let them sit outside for a couple days, and they will ripen to perfection.

Also, I decided to add hard boiled eggs to the salad...only because hard boiled eggs are a nice addition to any healthy salad...and because, I felt extremely guilty for having to toss out half a dozen eggs that I neglected to use up, and they were nearly one month old. I always check the dates on the egg carton and are careful not to use them more than 1 week pass the expired date. The expiration date is really just a caution to warn you but they will still be OK to use after the expiration date for a week, I'm quite sure of that! I always use organic eggs which cost a little more, but so well worth it. Same with my vegetables!

At our Latino produce market, everything is 'dirt' cheap. Just have to make an effort to stop there, and stock up on all the things I need; but it's more convenient to buy everything at the local supermarket when I do my weekly grocery shopping. Who can pass up Haas avocados...2 for $1.00 when at the supermarket they are $1.50 each! Same with the limes, at the produce market, they are always 10 for $1.00 compared to 3 for $1.00 at the supermarket. You really have a choice, but not always convenient to go out of your way when you can find all the things you need in one stop! Whole Foods Market is more expensive, but that still happens to be my very favorite market for the best quality!
Even though I live alone, but I have lovely neighbors/friends in my condo complex, and my family is just a few minutes over the 'bridge' on the other side of the Intracoastal waterway. I live on the island, which is quite a large size, and only 1 supermarket; which I recently realized, but it takes only 10 minutes to drive over the bridge and have the 'world at your feet'! I only cook about once or twice a week, and almost always have all my amazing meals at my daughter's Lora! ...and once a week at my son Joe...how fortunate can one mom be?...having loving family around me...feeling truly Blessed!
When you prepare something healthy and delicious, you really need to have the freshest ingredients, especially when you make a beautiful salad. You don't always need lettuce for your salad...just use your imagination, and create something that inspires you...no recipe needed for that. I happen to love sweet Vidalia or another brand of sweet onions. Naturally sweet; you can almost bite into it like an apple...but really, you don't want to do that; just peel, an slice, or dice it to saute it in cooking...never, ever any tears...which is the best part, as well!






Tomato, Avocado, and Cucumber Salad
created by; Elisabeth




4 Haas avocados
4 Plum (Roma) tomatoes
1 firm cucumber
2 hard boiled eggs
1/2 of a medium sweet onion
1 or 2 limes
1 bunch of Italian parsley
Extra Virgin olive oil
Sea Salt
freshly ground pepper







Cut avocados, tomatoes, in half...carefully remove the pits from the avocados, then cut them into half again, lengthwise...same with the tomatoes, and dice them into bite size pieces.

Peel cucumber partially, or all the way, cut it in half lengthwise, and dice it into bite-size pieces as well. For the hard boiled eggs, also cut in half lengthwise and dice into bite-size pieces.


For the onion, cut in half, and slice thin lengthwise, as well. For the parsley, chop a small handful, and save a few whole pieces for decoration. Combine everything in the proper order, starting with the tomatoes, and ending with the avocado, and hard boiled eggs...since they are delicate. they need to be on top.

Drizzle with about 1 Tbsp. of olive oil, and juice of half of a lime...or a whole if not enough juices. Salt, and pepper to taste, and additional oil, and juice of lime
if preferred.

Serve with pita bread, flat bread, or bread of your choice. Serves 2, generously!


Thank you everyone for your kind comments, and support; and I do appreciate your friendship, even though I don't comment regularly, and often...not even checking my own blog. I must confess that I'm  Pinterest...aholic, and not even bothering with my e-mails every day! (when you receive about 200 e-mails daily, you really have to add another e-mail address...can't see the 'trees' from the forest...as they say!
Have a wonderful weekend, dear friends! xo

31 comments:

Angie Schneider said...

Hiiiii Elisabeth, I am so HAPPY to you update the blog! o salad...can't get enough of it. This looks so good and healthy!

Patty Magyar said...

It looks simply delicious!

Elisabeth Foodandthrift said...

Angie, I've been wanting to update since last week; just not quite happy with photos of my previous creations~also not ambitious enough to post! I'm just so thrilled to find such fresh and lovely fruits and veggies at my special produce market to want to post about it!

Elisabeth Foodandthrift said...

Patty, I can't say enough about this delicious and healthy fresh salad...no lettuce needed with this, and it makes a comforting and satisfying healthy lunch!

Joyful said...

Hello Elizabeth, your salad looks divine especially against the cheerful yellow plate. I love bright colours of food on my plate! The price at the Latino store for avocados is wonderful too. I'm always looking for a deal on avocados at my local grocer. If I can buy them for $1.69 that is usually about as good as it gets.

Cathleen said...

This salad looks amazing! And if I make this at home, my boyfriend wouldn't touch it because of the tomatoes. So more for me :p

Rafeeda AR said...

I wouldn't mind having that salad... so colorful...

Ola said...

not only healthy but also optimistic on the yellow plate:)

Hankka said...

De jól néz ki! :) Nagyon guszta, szívesen elfogadnék most egy tányérkával! :)

mangiabella said...

yum! I can't resist avocados either, my favorite salad has mangos and avocados in it, with some purple onion and red bell pepper, a little cumin & red chile powder sprinkled on top, some fresh citrus squeezed on top...mmmmm. I know what you mean about emails, recently, I "unsubscribed" to any advertisements and newsletters that weren't immediately relevant to me, it took about 2 weeks, but now, I went from 150+ emails a day to 20 or less a day....it is so freeing!!!! have a wonderful weekend sweet friend

Emma said...

Yum, this fresh, lovely salad is perfect for our sunny weather at the moment! One of my favourite things to eat in the world. Have a great week Elisabeth :) :)

http://www.asplashofvanilla.com/

Zoe said...

Hi Elizabeth,

Funny that avocados like to ripen all the same time. I see that all 4 of yours are perfectly ripen to be part of this beautiful salad. Yum!

Zoe

Joanna Tham said...

Hi Eli! How was the weekend? I can never get enough of salads. I seriously love having them for lunch or even for dinner. I would usually have them serve with grilled chicken breasts or roast chicken, to pack up on the protein. I love this combination too, as it's fresh and hearty at the same time. Delish! ♥ Jo

Dawn Yucuis said...

Hi Elizabeth, I love this salad. You have all the things that I love on a salad, You are are lucky to be able to buy avocados so cheaply. Also I wanted to thank you for the kind words on my blog.

Phong Hong said...

Hi Elisabeth! I simply love salads and you have prepared a very beautiful and delicious one! Somehow, the sight of hard boiled eggs in salads always make the salad look tastier (or is it just me?). I love avocados too but they are rather pricey over here and I reserve them for special occasions. Thank you for coming by my blog in spite of your busy schedule. It is very much appreciated my friend!

Illéskrisz Konyhája said...

Igazi nyarat idéző saláta. Ebben a zord időben egy kis napfény az asztalon... Sajnos az itteni téli paradicsomoknak már nincs finom ízük... Nagyon guszta!

~~louise~~ said...

2 for $1.00, 10 for $1.00 I'm moving by you Elisabeth! Avocados are about $1.79 each here and forget the limes they are .99 right along with lemons, each!!!

I do buy the avocados though because I love them and they are so good for my diet. I buy lemons rather than limes but sometimes I switch, lol...Your salad looks quite lovely. I don't usually have luck with tomatoes ripening on the counter but the avocados do. I just read something that said if you want to make them ripen faster to put them next to bananas. I've heard apples speed up ripening but bananas???

Thanks so much for sharing, Elisabeth...

kitchen flavours said...

Such a beautiful and delicious salad! I love eggs in salads. Hass avocados are quite costly over here, since they are imported. But I do indulge in them once in a while!
Thanks for stopping by! Hope you have a wonderful week!

mia xara said...

Hi Elisabeth, this is a very flavorful salad, I just love avocados! I find they're so versatile.. Have a great week, XO

Kathy said...

Hi Elisabeth, This is a fresh, healthy looking salad! I adore avocados…but they are definitely more costly by me! I just bought a few yesterday at 99 cents for apiece! I have to give your salad a try! Very inviting! Hugs!

Elisabeth Foodandthrift said...

Louise, in our grocery supermarkets, they cost $1.50 each, and the limes abt. 3 for $1.00, same for the lemons, as well! I always have both lemons and limes on hand. I never heard of the avocados ripening next to bananas, they do much better to ripen on their own, as long as they are not stacked up on top of each other...they ripen a lot faster individually, in a wicker basket, which I have been using just for the fruits and vegetables to ripen, and then refrigerate them. Thanks for your kind comment, and do take care! xo

Elisabeth Foodandthrift said...

Kathy, 99 cents is not a bad price for Haas avocados; which sometimes we also get at our grocery supermarkets. I don't always feel like stopping at our special produce market, so I don't mind paying a little more if I need it right away! As for the salad, I did see an avocado-tomato salad recipe on pinterest with a photo, which was similar to mine (without the hard boiled eggs)...just don't like my avocados squished up with the tomatoes, I try to keep everything clean, and neat~ Hugs,

Elisabeth Foodandthrift said...

Hi Jo, my weekends are always nice and relaxing! I hear you about the salads, and where you reside in Malaysia, you also get the freshest and ripest tomatoes, and veggies all year, so you can enjoy the freshest salads, as well! For some reason, I don't combine grilled chicken with other than, Caesar salad (don't know why)...guess I just like my salads separate from the meat! Hugs,

Elisabeth Foodandthrift said...

Dawn, you have come such a 'long way' on your food blog, I love your new layout, and larger photos; displaying your beautiful creations. Yes, we are quite fortunate here to have such a wonderful fruit and produce market...all organic; not too many people know about this place because they cater mostly to local restaurants!

Daiana Molineris said...

Ciao bella!!! <3
This salade is wonderful!!!Come ogni tua ricetta darling!!:-))
Congratulations,10000 kisses see you soon

Katalin said...

De szép guszta, színes saláta! Most már vagyok olyan jól, hogy tudok nézegetni, és ritkán 1-1 új bejegyzést is feltenni.....

Elisabeth Foodandthrift said...

Kedves Katalin! nagyon meg renditett a szomoru hir, minden mást el képzeltem hogy miért nem postolsz és kommentálsz, de nem erre, ami történt veled. Nagyon sajnálom, és minél előbbi gyógyulást kivánok, szeretettel!

Amelia said...

Hi Elisabeth, your comfort salad look so appetizing and beautiful. Love the color combination. Avocado is expensive in our country.... it cost about USD 2 to 3 depend on the size. My in law house had a Avocado tree...we stay there for 10 years, it never bear a single fruit. :( When we moved out ... it started to bear fruits. hahaha.... Now my BIL & SIL is staying there but we still go back often to pluck what ever fruits that is available.

Best regards. Hugs to you.
Amelia

lena said...

your pics really justifies the freshness of the salad! i know this salad is terrific. Simple but yet very satisfying! I like avocados but dont know why nowadays those avocados that see over at my place here are extremely hard and takes ages to soft. I would like to try putting them out and see if they can turn softer faster :)

Elisabeth Foodandthrift said...

Lena, when avocados are purchase at their hard stage, that is when you leave them outside on the counter, or kitchen table, in single layer in a basket or fruit bowl. It take only 2 to 3 days for them to be at their perfect ripeness. You must refrigerate them if not used up at that point. You can make guacamole out of them when they're really ripe! The only time they are good for salad, is at their perfect ripeness, still firm, but ripe!

Ivy Sew said...

Hi Elisabeth, what a delightful, refreshing and healthy salad!! I love avocado too and hubby usually buys a lot when on offer. For those ripen avocado, what I do is I take out the flesh and freeze it. Thanks for sharing this nutritious salad and warmest regards :)