Category: Sides

Nothing says “Hello Summer” quite like this gorgeous summer fruit salad. Packed full of height of the season cherries, refreshing watermelon, tart raspberries and sweet strawberries, all topped off with our Cranberry Strawberry Vinaigrette.

It’s hot, hot, hot here in the Okanagan, and I’ll take any excuse not to turn on the oven! Especially when all the fruit is ripe and ready for picking. This beautiful fruit salad isn’t just for looks though, it’s so refreshing and so much better than old school fruit salads where everyone just picks out the good bits. This salad is all the good bits!

What you need to make this summer fruit salad

• Watermelon – Summer watermelon is the best for this recipe. It will make it extra sweet and delicious. Here are a couple tips for picking a good one:
  • Your watermelon should feel heavy for it’s size (this means it’s super juicy).
  • It should have a nice yellow (almost the color of a slightly ripe banana) splotch on it from where it was resting on the ground.
  • Try knocking on it – it should provide a nice “bounce” and have a hollow sound.
  • It shouldn’t be shiny.

• Strawberries – You will need strawberries washed and sliced for this recipe.

• Raspberries – Keep them whole and just toss them right in.

• Cherries – This is probably the most time consuming part, pitting all your cherries. But if you want a quick little hack, check out this instagram reel for an easy way to pit cherries.

• Fresh mint – This help bring out the freshness in this salad. Don’t have mint? No problem, you can easily swap in some basil to switch it up.

• Taste of the Okanagan Cranberry Strawberry Vinaigrette – My go-to salad dressing for the summer. It works just as well in a spinach salad as it does with this fruit salad. You’ll seriously be using it on everything this summer.

A few tips when making this salad

• Eat this summer fruit salad immediately after you make it. As this salad sits in the fridge, the fruits continue to release moisture, making the salad soggy and watery. It still tastes good, but the textures are best when served fresh.
• To add a note of saltiness, feel free to add crumbled feta cheese (vegan or regular) to this salad.
• We love the monochrome pink/red berries and watermelon in this salad, but you can absolutely switch it up by adding in different berries like blueberries or blackberries, or even add some grapes or peaches.

Summer Fruit Salad with Cranberry Strawberry Vinaigrette

Nothing says “Hello Summer” quite like this gorgeous summer fruit salad. Packed full of height of the season cherries, refreshing watermelon, tart raspberries and sweet strawberries, all topped off with our Cranberry Strawberry Vinaigrette.

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Servings 6

Ingredients

  

• 4 cups Watermelon cubed into 1 inch pieces
• 1.5 cups Strawberries Sliced in half or thirds if large
• 1.5 cups Raspberries
• 1.5 cups Cherries pitted and halved
• Fresh mint leaves torn or finely sliced
• Taste of the Okanagan Cranberry Strawberry Vinaigrette

Instructions

 

• Prep watermelon and berries and place in a large bowl. Drizzle dressing over top and lightly toss. 
• Garnish with some torn mint.

Loaded with fresh herbs, this easy cucumber salad with creamy Greek vinaigrette is light and refreshing and perfect for your next picnic or bbq.

It’s that time of year when backyard BBQs are in full swing and I’m always looking for a side dish that’s not only delicious, but that travels well. Something that’s cool and refreshing and not loaded down with mayo. Enter this crisp, light, and creamy cucumber salad. Farmers market cucumbers, lots of fresh herbs like dill, mint and parsley, some chickpeas for added protein and some red onion for bite and crunch. It all gets tossed in a healthy yogurt-based dressing that is so easy thanks to our Gaga for Greek Seasoning. If you’re looking for a summer side dish that goes just as well with juicy burgers as it does with grilled salmon, you’ll definitely wanna try this recipe.

Here’s what you need to make this salad

• Cucumbers – obviously you can’t make cucumber salad without cucumbers, but what kind of cucumbers should you use? We like to use English cucumbers because they have fewer seeds and the skin is nice and thin, meaning you don’t have to peel them. That being said, you can make this salad with pretty much any cucumber you have on hand. If you want to use garden cucumbers you’ll just want to peel them first and scoop out the seeds so that the salad doesn’t become watery.
• Fresh herbs – most garden fresh herbs will work in this salad, but stick to the soft leafy variety like dill, mint, parsley or cilantro. Save the woodier ones like sage and rosemary for cooking. Just rinse them clean, pat them dry and then pull the leaves from the stems and toss them in whole.
• Red Onion – Thinly sliced red onion gives some bite to this salad, but if you find raw onions a bit too strong you can soak them in cold water for a few minutes to soften their flavour.
• Chickpeas – This is totally optional, but we like to add a little protein. You could totally swap this for fresh summer corn, or leave them out altogether.
• Greek Yogurt – Bright and tangy, Greek yogurt gives the dressing some creaminess, but keeps it light and healthy.
• Gaga for Greek Seasoning – Next to the cucumbers this is the real star of the show. Our Gaga for Greek Seasoning makes is super easy to whip up this yummy Greek Vinaigrette. It’s also great rubbed on a chicken breast, and brings instant flavour to Greek potatoes.
• Olive Oil & Lemon Juice – just to round out the dressing and give it a bit more punch.

How to make this Greek Cucumber Salad

1. This salad takes a bit of prep. If you have a mandolin it really comes in handy for thinly slicing all the cucumbers, but not to worry and good sharp knife is really all you need. You’ll want to slice the cucumbers about 1/4 of an inch thick, then pat them dry with a paper towel. Add them to a large bowl along with the red onions, chickpeas and roughly chopped herbs.
2. For the dressing, simply mix together the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil and Gaga for Greek Seasoning. You can use an immersion blender, or just whisk it together in a small bowl.
3. Toss it all together and serve right away, or put it in the fridge to chill for an hour.

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Cucumber Salad with creamy Greek vinaigrette

Loaded with fresh herbs, this easy cucumber salad with creamy Greek vinaigrette is light and refreshing and perfect for your next picnic or bbq.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 2 long English cucumbers
• 1/2 can chickpeas drained and rinsed
• 1/4 red onion
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves chopped
• 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley chopped
• 2 tbsp fresh dill chopped

For the Dressing

• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup olive oil extra virgin
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp Taste of the Okanagan Gaga for Greek Seasoning

Instructions

• Using a mandolin or a sharp knife, thinly slicing all the cucumbers about 1/4 of an inch thick, then pat them dry with a paper towel. Add them to a large bowl along with the red onions, chickpeas and roughly chopped herbs.
• For the dressing, simply mix together the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil and Gaga for Greek Seasoning. You can use an immersion blender, or just whisk it together in a small bowl.
• Toss it all together and serve right away, or put it in the fridge to chill for an hour.