Even with my resistance to bidding summer farewell, I must admit that there is no better month for garden goodness than September (around here at least… is it the same where you live?). 

The “Dental School Budget,” as we affectionately call it, is made possible (in part) by the garden. When September rolls around we harvest and shred and puree and blanch and freeze enough garden goodness to get us through the winter (and eat WELL in September- haha). I thought y’all might be interested in some of the ways we try to utilize our potager to its fullest potential.

One way to put a garden full of tomatoes to good use? This cucumber tomato salad! The three tomato varieties, the cucumber and the basil are all from the garden- talk about putting the potager to good use.

Ingredients-
1 cucumber
a pile of tomatoes (we used three different smallish tomato varieties, whatever you have growing will do)
a sprig of basil
2 T balsalmic vinegar
drizzle olive oil
coarse sea salt (I used the rosemary variety, but I think regular old coarse salt would work too) to taste

Pick your ingredients. If you don’t have cucumber, but do have zucchini, I’d try it (and then let me know if it works as a cucumber sub).

Slice the larger tomatoes lengthwise. Slice the cucumber and basil. Add in balsalmic vinegar, drizzle olive oil and mix well.

Sprinkle with rosemary sea salt and serve. I love gardens.

ps- The next two weeks’ garden goodness installments include ways to extend the garden goodness through the winter- meet me back here for the details!