Omit the onions but it won't be as good & will be better this summer with good tomatoes:

TOMATO CUCUMBER PLATTER
6 tomatoes
2 TBL finely chopped basil
3 TBL finely chopped parsley
6 TBL finely chopped onion
6 cucumbers
1/3 cup red wine or tarragon vinegar
2/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 TBL capers
Snipped dill

Peel the tomateos & cut in halves. Combine the basil, parsley & onion & sprinkle over the tomato halves.
Peel the cucumbers; slice. Combine the vinegar, oil, salt & sugar & pour over the cucumber slices.
To serve, drain the cucumber slices. Arrange in center of platter, sprinkle with the capers & dill. Arrange the tomato halves around the edge.~~ NY Times

Does DH enjoy feta cheese? Summer tomatoes, cukes, feta with black pepper & a drizzle of EVOO (add some chopped fresh mint, too) is delish!

I like this. It is simple but good. If he can't have the onions (which are quite good in the dish) then just leave them out.

Greek Salad

Salads were the rage of the 1980s and that's when home cooks started making this classic restaurant-favored salad. Feta cheese--a key ingredient in Greek cooking--gets its sharp, salty flavor from the brine in which it is cured.

3 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges
1 medium cucumber, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
1 small red onion, cut into thin wedges
1 recipe Greek Vinaigrette (see below)
8 to 10 Greek black olives
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (2 ounces)

In a salad bowl combine the tomatoes, cucumber, and red onion. Add Greek Vinaigrette; toss to coat. Sprinkle with Greek olives and feta cheese. Makes 4 side-dish servings.
Greek Vinaigrette: In a screw-top jar combine 2 tablespoons olive oil or salad oil; 2 tablespoons lemon juice; 2 teaspoons snipped fresh oregano or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed; 1/8 teaspoon salt; and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Cover and shake well.
Nutrition facts per serving: 143 calories, 12 g total fat, 3 g saturated fat, 12 mg cholesterol, 273 mg sodium, 9 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 4 g protein, 9% vitamin a, 43% vitamin c, 8% calcium, 5% iron.

Note: I sometimes like to dice the tomatoes, cucumbers and onions and continue w/the recipe. One of my favorite Greek restaurants in DC does it this way and it is so good w/Kabobs over rice.

Thank you. All of these recipes sound delicious. I'll try them all and see which one he likes best. :-)

Years ago I liked to add chopped fresh tomato, chopped cucumber, and black pepper to cottage cheese and stir it together. It's a yummy refreshing treat in summer.

Thanks again,
Jen

Jenn, I love cuc, tomato and chopped carrot mixed into cottage cheese - but I like "Spike" seasoning mix instead of just pepper - have you tried it? They have a salt free "Spike", its not as good, but its okay.

Lisava, I make a Greek Salad similar to yours but I use the Penzey's Greek Seasoning and I use half red wine vinegar and half lemon juice. The fellow that runs a Mediterranean Restaurant here suggested I try that and we really like it. I will give yours a try too. Thanks.

I make something my Italian friend called "salada"....and others call Italian salad.
It is somply a cuke washed and cut into 1/2 inch cubes ( sort of! LOL!) a sweet onion ( Vidalia or Maui or another) cut into about the same sixe pieces, and a tomato or 2 cut into pieces.....and if you like it, a green pepper also cut into 1/2 inch squares.
Sprinkle all with salt, a tiny sprinkle of sugar, a bit of vinegar, fresh ground pepper and a quick drizzle of olive oil.
There is no recipe any more than there is a recips for the amount of salt and pepper on fried eggs or catsup on a hamburger.....
Toss and serve....it keeps a couple of days in the refrig if it lasts that long.
The salt will draw out a lot of moisture, so you wiull want to serve with a slotted spoon.
It's called Italian Salad because it's the colors of the Italian flag.
Linda C

Lots of Greek Restaurants in Vancouver and Toronto. Our favourite is just the

Ann

I just sat down here with my version of a quickly Greek Salad.
Only the parts I like.
Chopped cucumbers, feta cheese, chopped tomatoes, chopped red onion and fresh cracked pepper and sea salt...
MMMMMmmm boy the breath is horrid..but it's soooooooo yummy!

Here's a tomato and cucumber salad with a marinated character, good for buffets. If your husband has a hard time with onions, leave them out, mince a little scallion or sweet onion very fine or allow onion slices to marinate in the dressing for a while then remove them to eat on an Italian sandwich or something. I have a similar tendency to indigestion with green bell peppers, but I still love this salad. Tomatoes and cucumbers are added in about equal proportions, maybe heavier on tomatoes during tomato season. Onion and bell pepper are for flavor and color, in smaller amounts to taste:

1. Cover slices or chunks of sweet red ONION with Good Seasons Italian DRESSING, prepared according to package directions, in the bottom of a large bowl. Allow onions to marinate while preparing other ingredients.

2. Cut TOMATOES in bite-sized chunks, removing some of seedy, liquidish pulp (Roma and other low-moisture tomatoes work very well in this salad). If you're feeling very fancy, peel the tomatoes first. Peel and cut CUCUMBERS in slices or chunks and add to the bowl, along with the tomatoes.

Add green BELL PEPPER chunks or slices, freshly ground black pepper and more salad dressing until there is 1/4 inch deep layer or more in the bottom of the bowl after tossing. Try some of those deep green Ancho chiles instead of green bell pepper for a touch of heat. Cover and marinate for up to two hours at room temperature or a few hours in the refrigerator, tossing occasionally.

IN WINTER when it's hard to get good tomatoes and/or cucumbers:

1. Substitute extra vinegar for water when preparing dressing mix to marinate onions. Apple cider vinegar tastes best in the winter salad. If you can't find sweet onions, thinly slice a smaller amount of regular onion or scallions.

2. Substitute bite-sized BROCCOLI and CAULIFLOWER florets for tomatoes and cucumbers, heavy on the broccoli.

3. Substitute peeled, thinly sliced CARROTS (you may blanch carrots briefly if desired or use halved peeled baby carrots or carrots cut in matchsticks so they will be easier to get on a fork) and sliced BLACK OLIVES for green peppers.

Cover and marinate for a little longer than the tomato and cucumber salad, tossing occasionally. Serve at room temperature, refrigerating leftovers.

Even kids like this salad despite its strongly flavored ingredients, and it is perfectly suited to buffets, as it is served at room temperature. If you have cold leftovers the next day, toss in some shredded cabbage or mild Asian greens just before serving to take advantage of the surprisingly large quantity of salad dressing which is required for this salad. I have used up to four little bottles of prepared dressing in a very large bowl of salad for a buffet. The salad will be sweeter and milder the second day due to juices from the vegetables mixing with the dressing.

This is my favorite summer salad. Best during this time when the tomatoes and other veggies are fresh but you can do it during winter months also. Just leave out the onions or substitute another vegetable.

Fire & Ice Salad

¾ cup white vinegar
1 ½ teaspoon mustard seed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon red pepper (ground)
¼ cup cold water
1 ½ teaspoon celery salt
4 ½ teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

6 tomatoes peeled and quartered
1 green pepper sliced in strips
1 cucumber sliced
1 red onion, sliced

Bring first 8 ingredients to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Allow to cool slightly; then pour over veggies and chill. The skin needs to be removed from the tomatoes! Boil for a couple of minutes, then remove the tomatoes and drop in ice bath & the skin will peel off easily.

Glad I opened this one - cutting and pasting like mad!

Here is another with yogurt. You can enjoy as a chopped salad or relish and is is especially good with spicy foods. Maybe he can stand green onion? If not - omit. You can also use as a chunky dip.

Cucumbers and Tomatoes in Yogurt

1 medium cucumber
1 medium green onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
14 teaspoon ground cumin
Dash of pepper
1/2 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup plain yogurt (I use non-fat)

Cut cucumber lengthwise in half, scoop out seeds and chop. Mix cucumber, onion and salt; let stand 10 minutes. Stir in tomato. Mix remaining ingredients except yogurt; toss with cucumber mixture. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes to blend flavors. Drain thoroughly. Just before serving, fold in yogurt.

Thanks everyone for all the recipes, they all sound delicious.

The dip sounds like a delicious and healthy alternative for fatty dips. Would you serve that with pita bread?

Thanks again everyone.

Jen

Jen,
Pita bread - great idea! Ha I never thought of that...considering the yogurt and cumin I don't know why that didn't come to mind.

Glad to help, Maggie. ;-)

Lisava,

That "Fire and Ice" dressing sounds like it would be great on coleslaw, too. I might add a little oil just to carry flavor and use cider vinegar for slaw.

there's some beautiful variations on a theme here! and yep, feta is a great cheese with the tomatoes and cukes and a little dill but try some fresh mozarella with some oregano and/or basil. i can hardly wait until we can get local tomatoes again!

lisava - just found this thread when searching for salads and vinaigrettes. I look forward to trying to make many of these now that the summer produce is available. But I'd also love to try that Greek restaurant. I'm in DC. Which restaurant do you like? There's 2 I've been meaning to try and haven't gotten to yet - Mouraya and (something like) Komi?

For anyone still reading this, how would these Greek salads be with grape tomatoes. I just got some wonderful golden grape tomatos at the farmer's market today - best I've ever had. I haven't decided what to do with them yet (other than eat them out of the carton).