Cucumber Tomato Salad with Greek Dressing

Mid-December and the world is accelerating toward Christmas with the frenzy of a society that believes holidays require purchases. I finished my Christmas shopping in two hours because I am Greek and my gifts are primarily food: baklava for colleagues, koulourakia for neighbors, and olive oil for everyone because olive oil is the universal gift and anyone who disagrees has never received a bottle of good Kalamata extra virgin with a red ribbon around it.

Sophia's finals went well — she reported her grades with the matter-of-fact confidence of a girl who expected excellence and received it. Straight A's for the first semester of high school. My daughter. Straight A's. I called Mama. Mama said of course. I called Dimitri. Dimitri said that is my niece. I would have called Baba but the dead do not answer phones, so I went to the bakery instead and told him while rolling phyllo, which felt right, because Baba heard everything best when hands were working and mouths were quiet.

Alexander is finishing his first semester of senior year with the quiet satisfaction of a boy who has met his own standards, which are higher than most people's standards and lower than Voula's, because nothing is higher than Voula's standards. He received a scholarship notification from USF — partial academic scholarship. He called me from his room and his voice cracked with something between pride and relief and I said come downstairs, and he came downstairs, and I made avgolemono because that is what you make when your son receives a scholarship and your heart is too full for words.

The bakery is selling out daily. Mama is exhausted and will not admit it. She comes home at 2 PM and naps — Mama naps now, which is a development as alarming as it is overdue, because the woman has not voluntarily rested since approximately 1972. She says the naps are strategic. I say the naps are necessary. We do not argue about it because arguing with Voula about rest is like arguing with the sea about tides.

I made galaktoboureko for the family — the custard pie in phyllo with lemon syrup that was Baba's favorite. I make it every December now as a tradition within a tradition, a dish that connects Christmas present to Christmas past to the man who loved custard pie and loved his family and showed both loves with the same silent devotion. The syrup was perfectly lemony. The custard was silk. Baba would have eaten three pieces and said nothing. I ate two pieces and said everything. That is the difference between Nikos and me. He was silence. I am sound. Together we were a complete sentence.

The avgolemono and the galaktoboureko are the stars of a December like this one — the dishes that carry the weight of love and grief and celebration all at once — but no Greek table survives on stars alone. This salad is the constant, the reliable brightness sitting alongside every heavy, important thing: cool cucumber, ripe tomato, good Kalamata olives, crumbled feta, and a dressing built on the same extra virgin olive oil I give as gifts because I believe in it that much. It asks almost nothing of you, which is exactly what you need when the rest of the meal has asked everything.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 10 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 large English cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced into half-moons
3 medium ripe tomatoes, cut into bite-sized chunks (or 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved)
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted
3/4 cup crumbled Greek feta cheese (block feta crumbled by hand is best)
3 tablespoons good-quality extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dried Greek oregano, plus more to finish
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Prep the vegetables. Slice the cucumber, chunk the tomatoes, and thinly slice the red onion. If your onion is very sharp, soak the slices in cold water for 5 minutes, then drain and pat dry — this takes the edge off without losing the flavor.
Make the dressing. In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, dried oregano, salt, and pepper until combined. Taste and adjust — it should be bright and a little bold, because the vegetables will soften it.
Assemble the salad. Combine the cucumber, tomatoes, red onion, and olives in a wide serving bowl. Pour the dressing over and toss gently to coat everything evenly.
Add the feta. Scatter the crumbled feta over the top. Do not toss again — let it sit in pieces on the surface so it stays creamy rather than dissolving into the dressing.
Finish and serve. Crumble a little extra dried oregano between your fingers over the top — this releases the oils and makes the whole bowl fragrant. Serve immediately, or let it rest for up to 15 minutes so the tomatoes release a little of their juice into the dressing. Do not refrigerate before serving; this salad belongs at room temperature.

Nutrition (per serving)

Cucumber Tomato Salad with Greek Dressing — The Side Dish That Belongs on Every Greek Table Worth Remembering