Time to cut back the oregano before it overtakes the entire garden, it’s growing like a weed in it’s little corner of the world. Speaking of the world, last Friday I shared a French inspired recipe for a sable breton galette and this week I’ve moved on to Greece with my Greek inspired green bean salad with a generous variety of fresh herbs from my garden. In addition to fresh oregano, which is traditional in a Greek salad, all kinds of fresh herbs work well in this salad – I added a combination of lemon basil, parsley, summer savory and tarragon. I love the flavors of fresh herbs in a green bean salad so when I found this recipe from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health for Green Bean and Tomato Greek Salad under a recipe section which refers to ‘a healthier you’, I thought of the fresh green beans and tomatoes I picked up at the market and a healthier me. I made a few adaptions to the recipe, mostly all in the dressing part of the recipe and I also added a few sliced cucumbers. While my husband and son were happily playing in a golf tournament over the weekend, I enjoyed a plate of this Greek style green bean salad all to myself for dinner last night with no worries about grilling up a piece of chicken or steak to go along side. There is nothing I like more on a warm Summer evening than a simple dinner featuring a few of my favorite veggies -green beans, tomatoes and cucumbers.
Adapted from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Carbone Cancer Center.
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh green beans, ends snipped
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 2 cups thinly sliced cucumbers
- 3/4 cup light feta cheese, crumbled
- for the dressing
- 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar, or red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup, mixed finely chopped fresh herbs, I used oregano, tarragon, lemon basil, and parsley
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the beans in salted boiling water until crisp-tender, drain and place in a bowl with ice water.
- Drain the beans when they are chilled and place in a large bowl.
- Add the tomatoes, red onion, cucumbers and feta cheese.
- make the dressing
- Whisk together the vinegar, olive oil, herbs, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour the dressing over the green bean salad and toss to mix.
- Add more salt and pepper if needed and serve.