If you read my Pesto, Tomato, and Mozzarella Pasta Salad post, you may have noticed my beginnings of an inventory of my urban container garden. In addition to the tomatoes and basil, I’ve also planted a White Wonder cucumber. I was attracted to this one because it grows well in a pot. I’ve been very impressed by how abundant it’s produced cucumbers. The only casualty so far has been a very early stage cucumber that the dog ran over – the cucumber has climbed down the side of the pot and is sidling its way toward the grass, so this wasn’t much of a surprise, as it’s in the dog’s traffic pattern for playing fetch.
I also planted a zucchini and an eggplant, neither of which seem particularly enthusiastic about producing anything. I also planted some fennel, though they are taking their time to produce fennel bulbs as well. For now, my harvest has been cucumbers, three cherry tomatoes, basil, and some fennel fronds. I can live with that.
I also planted a few edible flowers this year – scented geraniums, marigolds, chives, and nasturtiums. The nasturtiums looked so pathetic for so long, I almost thought I was going to have to give up on them. Then, one day in late June, they started blooming and I now have a pot of riotous dark red nasturtiums that are overwhelming the lavender plant I shoved in for good measure. For some reason, our dog, Daisy, likes to nibble on the nasturtiums and the chives. I guess she knows her edible flowers.
I gathered a handful of cucumbers last night and a few nasturtiums. They blended together perfectly for this cucumber and nasturtium salad. I had fennel salt on hand from last weekend: my fennel is producing fronds, at the very least. The only part of this recipe that takes a little bit of time is the fennel salt – but most of that is very hands off.
Cucumber and Nasturtium Salad with Fennel Salt
Serves 4
5 or 6 small to medium cucumbers, peeled and sliced.
8-10 nasturtium flowers, gently washed and patted dry.
3 or 4 tablespoons pine nuts
Fennel salt (link to recipe here) to taste
Olive oil to taste
Place the cucumbers in a bowl. Separate the nasturtium petals and toss over the cucumbers. Add the pine nuts and gently combine. Sprinkle with fennel salt and drizzle with olive oil.
Enjoy!
