Ask my family how I feel about Israeli salad. I am very passionate about this point.:) Some people think of Israeli salad, nah. Or they think about the soggy Israeli salad from their local pizza store. Israeli salad can literally be the best side dish to pretty much anything. The key is you need a nice amount of lemon and/or lime juice. Obviously, fresh is always better. It must be salted correctly (so taste as you flavor it), and it needs black pepper for sure. The smaller you cut the pieces, the more all the flavors meld together. So now you never have to think about Israeli salad as boring. Especially because we don’t always have fresh lettuce or other vegetables. But cucumbers, peppers and red onions—they last for a while in the fridge and you can make a quick salad—and make extra for the next day. The only problem is, no matter how much I make, there is never any left. It’s that good!

Ingredients:

• 5 Persian cucumbers, diced (small pieces)
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 red pepper, diced (small pieces)
• 1 yellow pepper, diced (small pieces)
• 1 orange pepper, diced (small pieces)
• 1 red onion, diced (small pieces)

Dressing:

• 1 lime
• 1 lemon
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chiffonade
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chiffonade

Instructions:

1. Dice the Persian cucumbers, red pepper, yellow pepper, orange pepper and red onion into small pieces. Halve the cherry tomatoes.
2. In a small bowl, combine the juice of 1 lime and 1 lemon. Add kosher salt, black pepper and olive oil. Mix well to combine.
3. Place all the diced vegetables and halved cherry tomatoes in a large mixing bowl.
4. Pour the dressing over the vegetables in the mixing bowl.
5. Toss the vegetables with the dressing until they are evenly coated.
6. Add fresh parsley chiffonade and fresh cilantro chiffonade to the salad, and gently toss again to incorporate.
7. Allow the salad to marinate for about 30 minutes to an hour to allow the flavors to meld together and the vegetables to absorb the dressing.
8. Once marinated, serve and enjoy your refreshing and colorful vegetable salad!