Marinated Long Bean Summer Salad

It’s so hard to find simple delicious recipes who’s main ingredients all come from the farm. In this respect, this recipe is a winner. Most seasonal recipe books come from places with different seasons and a different mix of vegetables from our own so when I came across this recipe, it quickly became a part of my seasonal salad rotation. I have to give credit for this recipe to our friend Courtney Robins who runs the Joy of Setting the Table. We hosted a number of field trips in partnership with her on our farm in previous years that involved harvesting products out of the field that would then be cleaned, chopped and prepared into a three course meal. She would always come up with simple recipes that not only highlighted our produce but were super delicious. I tweaked the original recipe slightly to include entirely farm vegetables but the dressing and directions are all hers. This dish focuses on our yard long beans and the unparalleled Suyo cucumber which are both plentiful from June through August. Don’t forget to throw in a bit of the farm’s serrano or gong boa peppers for a kick. Further, the fact that it’s a cold salad and can be prepared relatively quickly make it a great Houston summer dish especially for a farmer coming home after an exhausting day in the fields under an unforgiving sun.