Did you hear the one about the Farmer who wanted to grow “seedless” cucumbers, but when he searched through the nursery catalogs he couldn’t find any seeds!
Cucumbers are one of America’s top five garden vegetables. Cucumis sativas belongs to the Cucurbitaceae family, which includes watermelon, muskmelon, pumpkin, and squash.
Native to India, cucumber is one of our most ancient vegetables. There is evidence in the Bible that they were cultivated and eaten in Ancient Egypt. The Roman Emperor Tiberius demanded that there be cucumbers on his table every day of the year requiring his gardeners to come up with ingenious planting solutions during the off-season. It was during the reign of Henry VIII that cucumbers made their way to England because his Queen, Catherine of Aragon, demanded them for her Spanish-style salads. Columbus is credited with first bringing cucumbers to the New World in 1493.
The ability of cucumbers to retain water earned it the reputation for “never losing its cool”. In the 17th century, physicians prescribed placing patients who had a fever on a bed of cucumbers to cool them down. The inside of a cuke can register up to 20 degrees cooler than the outside.
Cucumbers are divided into 2 general categories; the larger ones are for slicing and eating, the smaller ones are for pickling. The largest cucumber ever grown was 67” long and weighed 154 lbs. Cucumbers contain 97% water so that a half cup of cucumber contains only 8 calories.
Be they seedless, English, Persian or homegrown, cucumbers form the base of elegant hors d’oeuvres when topped with a fish spread, seafood, cheese spread, caviar, veggies, etc. Dry the cucumber slices well before adding the topping since they are mostly water.
Cucumber Cooler
3 Persian cucumbers or 1 large cucumber peeled & sliced
½ melon (Galia, Honeydew, etc.) peeled and cut into pieces
Several sprigs of mint
3 Tbsps. sugar
1 cup vodka
Ice
Cucumbers can be included in a variety of cocktails. Try adding them to your gin and tonic.
Cold Cucumber and Dill Soup
2 Tbs. butter
1 leek or onion, chopped
2 cucumbers, peeled and diced
2 “handfuls” of fresh dill
1 medium potato, peeled and diced
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
½ can water
1 chicken bouillon cube
¼ tsp. dry mustard
Salt and pepper
½ – 1 cup milk (or combination of milk and cream)
Melt butter in a saucepan and sauté leek (or onion) until transparent. Add remaining ingredients through mustard and simmer for approximately 30 minutes until potato is tender. Let cool and purée in a blender. Season with salt and pepper and thin with milk and/or cream to desired consistency. Serve chilled.
Cucumber Dill Sauce
1 cup sour cream
2 oz. creme fraiche
1 cucumber, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp. chopped onion
1 Tbsp. dill weed
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Puree all ingredients in a blender.
Cucumber Water
Slice cucumbers and add to chilled water an hour or two before serving.
