cucumber

All the creamy, savory, nutty flavors you love in this takeout favorite in an easy at-home version

This trio of cucumbers, corn, and tomatoes adds a fresh snap of color.

Who says gyros have to be sandwiches? With this savory spread, you can customize and enjoy them any way you'd like.

The heavy-rotation dinner.

These lettuce cups feature traditional Greek flavors that come together in less than 30 minutes, making it a great option for weekday meals.

This fresh shake has staying power thanks to the healthy fat and protein provided by the chia seeds and protein powder.

Move aside mayo-drenched tuna and egg salads. This deconstructed take on the standard fare uses Greek yogurt for a protein boost and delivers fresh crunch from the cucumber and almonds.

When eating plant-based, you don’t have to give up meaty, satisfying buffalo wings. Just sub cauliflower for the chicken and pair with a roasted tempeh salad to get all those familiar flavors, but with a nutritious boost.

Tuna is an excellent source of both muscle-building protein and inflammation-fighting omega-3 fats.

Prep this easy plant-based sandwich in the morning and it will be delicious at lunch time. Pack ¼ cup of the hummus and the carrots sticks as a side.

This power bowl — topped with a creamy, homemade eggplant dip called baba ghanoush — is fresh and filling.

You need not head south for the fatty, deep-fried original – try this cleaner take on New Orleans' classic sammie, with grilled fish, lots of veggies, whole-wheat baguette and a light goat cheese spread.

Tender salmon and warm Moroccan spices make for a quick and healthy meal. Bulgur is low in fat and a good source of vitamins, minerals and fiber for a filling side.

In the height of summer, you won't find a better side dish than this deceptively simple combination of peak-season produce.

Sometimes referred to as “the mother of all bowls,” the Korean-born bibimbap is the ultimate savory dish and also works incredibly well tucked into a burrito for on-the-go eating.

Heart-healthy salmon is coated in a tangy marinade, and cucumber ribbons, carrots and avocado balance out this simple dish.

Causa is a Peruvian layered dish with potatoes and seafood or chicken. Typically, it’s layered into a ring mold to make a cylindrical shape, but we’ve reimagined it into a bowl packed with crisp, fresh vegetables.

Never again have boring tuna salad! A spicy mayo mixture livens up this tuna bowl with crisp veggies and fragrant sesame seeds.

Southeast Asian flavors run through this nice contrast of hot chicken over cold salad. They’re bound together by the marinade, which is boiled after seasoning the chicken so it can be turned into the salad dressing.

Gazpacho, the famous chilled soup, comes in lots of varieties in Spain. This white gazpacho, made with cucumbers and green grapes, is used as a sauce to complement seared scallops.

This versatile spread can be used on crackers, or you can add water to the pâté and use it as a dip.

The key to this salad is to cut the veggies into extra-small pieces – about the size of a pea – so that you get a variety of flavors and textures in every bite. Salzman uses her Everyday Salad Dressing to dress this fresh salad.

This salad has a nice bit of heat to it thanks to the fresh chile. Fiery, sweat-inducing capsaicin is found mostly in the white pith (and the seeds that come into contact with the pith), so devein and seed the chile if you want to cut back on spiciness. For added flavor, you can add chopped fresh mint, cilantro or Thai basil to the salad.

This hearty bowl is a staff favorite – we just love the pairing of the sweet and tangy raspberry sauce over savory chicken and crunchy vegetables.

Make this ahead and have lunch on hand for several days - simply refrigerate salad and dressing separately and combine in the morning or right before eating.

Light and fresh, we give this classic South American dish an upgrade with the addition of a quick, tangy gazpacho.

Ditch the standard pita and serve falafels as part of a colorful falafel salad bowl.

All the flavor of salmon rolls, minus the finicky rolling – that’s the beauty of these easy-to-make rice bowls. Furikake is a dry blend of sesame seeds, seaweed and dried fish. Look for it in specialty Asian grocery stores or make your own using our easy recipe; alternatively, you can simply substitute for sesame seeds.

Light and thirst-quenching, this summer sip is made with electrolyte-rich coconut water to keep you hydrated on a hot summer’s day.

Cold soups are the perfect lunch or quick dinner during the blistering summer months as they satisfy your need to cool down. They can be made in large batches and stored 
for an easy lunch or a perfectly planned picnic.

Looking for tasty new ways to put your cucumber crop to good use? Add them to burgers! Here, we’ve mixed small, sweet Persian cucumbers into healthy salmon patties to make them extra juicy. Serve with tomato slices on a large, sturdy lettuce leaf, such as Boston lettuce or radicchio, or on a whole-grain bun

Maine lobster mixed with sweet mango and fresh jicama is topped with a refreshing cucumber vinaigrette in this recipe. Surprise your guests with this elegant salad that takes only 25 minutes make.

An antioxidant powerhouse, kimchi is brimming with vitamins A, B and C, which are important for immunity and vision, cell metabolism and collagen production.

We’ve taken the classic flavors in a bagel & lox sandwich and packed them into a salad with wild smoked salmon, dill, red onion and even toasted bagel chips. To lend a delicious richness to this meal, try adding 3 to 4 oz of crumbled goat cheese.

These juicy, open-faced burgers are smothered with a sweet and tangy basil yogurt sauce and topped with cheese, avocado and all the fixings – we promise, they’ll be your new favorite burgers!

Russet potatoes have a dry, starchy flesh that becomes wonderfully fluffy when baked, making them the ideal candidate for these richly spiced twice-baked potatoes. Serrano chiles can be quite hot, so reduce the amount used (or substitute with milder jalapeño) if you prefer this dish to be milder.

Skip the deep fryer and make use of the oven! We coated tender halibut in brown rice cereal and topped it with our roasted corn salsa and yogurt-feta sauce.

This plant-based version of lettuce wraps introduces crisp and refreshing cucumber noodles. A sweet-tart peanut sauce is drizzled inside the wrap and also used as a flavorful dip.

Black beans, corn, cheddar and crunchy tortilla chips are the hallmark ingredients of our killer Southwest salad. Serve it in a bowl, or layer it in a glass jar and take it to go.

Don’t let this noodle bowl fool you. Although it’s full of crunchy and colorful vegetables, it’s really about the herbs, with refreshing basil and mint in every bite.

Savor this beef and chickpea chili on those cold winter nights when all you want is a warming bowl of comfort.

This clean chicken burger from our September 2014 meal plan satisfies a burger craving and is ready in 40 minutes.

Baking fish in parchment paper, a quick-cooking method, gently preserves the fish's tenderness while capturing its flavor. Top it with a cool cucumber salsa.

The tangy coconut lime dressing in this cool and colorful Thai rice noodle salad goes hand in hand with naturally sweet mango and red bell pepper.

Kofta are spiced meatballs traditionally made with beef or lamb. While pumpkin is not customary, we’ve added it here to provide maximum juiciness to lean ground chicken. Try serving our Middle Eastern chicken kofta with whole-wheat pitas, or, for a lower carb option, grilled eggplant slices.

Bulgogi is a marinated Korean dish usually made with very thin slices of rib eye, but in our version we swap out the beef for pork tenderloin. Serve in lettuce leaves with cucumber and cooked rice, as shown here, or get creative with other toppings such as kimchi or sprouts.

You've never made quicker - or tastier - crab cakes than these. With zesty lemon, sweet bell pepper and a yogurt-cucumber sauce over top, these cakes offer an unbeatable flavor combination.

This soothing juice will get you de-stressed after a long day, thanks to nutrients such as folic acid, which helps create dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure.

Here, vegetables and tofu step in for the traditional meat and get a soak in a spicy coconut marinade before a quick skewerless grill. (Don't fret - no fire pit required!)

Our salmon burgers (packed with omega-3s!) get a whole lot of pizzazz with herbes de Provence, capers, olives and Dijon, then cool down under cucumber yogurt sauce. Oh, and the whole dish takes just 10 minutes!

Aside from ample health benefits in Sonja Finn's low-cal salad, there's a bounty of textures and flavors to experience – from the chewy feel of farro between your teeth, juxtaposed with smooth and creamy avocado, to the tangy taste of the Chile-Mint Vinaigrette.

Serve this party-perfect greek feta dip with veggies, as a spread for burgers and sandwiches, or with chicken or veggie skewers.