Cucumber and Tomato salad with 'rawnch' dressing

This recipe, is LONG past due! I've been meaning to put it up for quite some time but kept forgetting! Definitely, this one is well kept in my recipe book. My mom loves it extraordinarily so! In our garden, we have tomatoes growing as well as something called a "cucumber melon"- some type of misguided hybrid we created. woops. Well anywayyyzzzz, I wanted to make a cucumber salad with this cumbermelon. I've been dying to create a ranch dressing, and I finally did it EEEEEEE ^.^ 

Although this is probably a great summer recipe, I dare you to at least try to make the ranch dressing. It's too heavenly to pass up

Also another little tidbit- in my recipe, I use tarragon instead of dill (which is the usual for ranch dressing). I only did this because I had a terrible experience with dill one time and I refuse to ever use it again! The taste still scars me. Tarragon is a great option because it is subtler in the licorice taste. However, if you want to use dill- go for it! But for dill, use fresh!

Creamy Cucumber and Tomato Salad with Rawnch Dressing

vegan~glutenfree~can be made raw!

 For the Rawnch

1 block silken tofu (or a recipe of cashew cream if you want it raw!)

2 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon celtic sea salt

4-5 tablespoons dried tarragon, or 2-3 tablespoons of fresh dill

Puree all of the ingredients in a food processor. Voila! You have the easiest rawnch dressing that is gluten free and vegan!

For the Cucumber & Tomato Salad

5 tomatoes (we had some awesome plum tomatoes!), chopped 

2 cucumbers (or if you actually have cucumber melons, those work too!), chopped

3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1) Put your chopped tomatoes, cucumbers and three tablespoons ACV into a medium sized mixing bowl. Combine, and let it marinate for approximately 1 hour (you should do this before making the ranch). 

2) Once it is done marinating, drain the vinegar really well then mix in the dressing (you might have some leftover- which is great for other uses!)

3) Let it chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, before you serve it!

Monsieur Iggy helping his mommy clean out the lint catcher while I do laundry- ISN'T HE THE BEST?!

Homemade Guacamole

It's crazy- in less than a week I will be back at Penn State for my final semester. I cannot believe the fact that I will be a graduate from college in a few months! Not only that, but this summer went by too fast. 

I picked some of the CUTEST onions from my little garden I have. They are so precious! And they are so packed with flavor that I know now why they are called sweet onions! With my onions, I decided to make a simple, yet decadent homemade guacamole. It was so simple, so easy, and my mom is so in love with it that she has already asked me to make it 4 times more! 

Homemade Guacamole
- 4 guacamoles, pitted and cubed
- 2 heirloom tomatoes, diced
- 1/4 cup cilantro
- 1 whole red onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon himalayan sea salt
- Juice of 2 limes

add all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mash with a potato masher. serve!

ALSO! My friend rescued a cat yesterday! My friend found this kitten, named monsieur smelly, and brought it into his home. He brought him in, fed him for the night, and then the next morning I went over and searched around for a place for this cat, asked everywhere, and finally I found someone kind enough to take in monsieur smelly. I'm so grateful for this person to give this itty bitty kitty a home!

Watermelon Gazpacho

It's already halfway through the summer and I realize I have not even posted a recipe about watermelon. Like, really? I eat it every day and still have yet to make it more creative than cutting it into a wedge and throwing the occasional spice on top!! 

Today turned out to be a perfect day to make it, considering it was so hot, yet no too scorching to make a perfect gazpacho- a soup served cold [dahhh]. This gazpacho is the perfect combination of refreshing and spicy. 

I made mine for my mom's friend for a party. Apparently it was a huge hit because my mom said people were guzzling it down! and the best part? It literally took less than 10 minutes.

Watermelon Gazpacho

serves a party; 10 minutes to make

4-5 cups watermelon, seedless, chopped

1 1/2 medium cucumber, chopped

1 large beefsteak tomato, chopped

1 medium shallot, diced

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon EVOO

1 tablespoon of fresh basil or mint (I used basil since it was fresh from the garden), chopped

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1. Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir to combine.

2. Add your mixture to a blender in 3 parts- make it as chunky or as smooth as you want. I made my first two batches chunky (blended for 5 seconds), and my last one very smooth (blended for 15 seconds). Serve in a large bowl and ladle into elegant cups or glasses and garnish with a fresh basil leaf!

Just catching up on the latest news in the Pocono Record. My smart boy ;]