Vegan Apple Cucumber Salad with Mint Yogurt Dressing! The crispness of fresh cucumbers pairs beautifully with the sweet-tart crunch of juicy apples, creating an unexpected yet delightful flavor combination that dances on your palate.
Elevate your salad game with this refreshing Vegan Apple Cucumber Salad, drizzled with a zesty Mint Yogurt Dressing that will tantalize your taste buds! This vibrant dish is not only a feast for the eyes but also a powerhouse of nutrition, making it the perfect choice for health-conscious food lovers. Each bite bursts with a wonderous freshness, while the creamy mint yogurt dressing adds a luscious touch that brings all the ingredients together in perfect harmony.
Whole Food Plant Based, Vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients and gluten free.
Hi there, Ameera here!
Get ready to shake up your salad routine with this delightful and unexpected Vegan Apple Cucumber Salad! At first glance, the combination of crisp cucumbers and sweet apples might raise an eyebrow, but trust me—once you take that first bite, you’ll be hooked!
Don’t let the unconventional pairing scare you off; this salad is a hidden gem that deserves a spot on your table. You’ve simply got to give this one a try and discover a new favorite that’s not only delicious but also packed with nutrients!
Tips for Success:
- Flavor Profile: This Vegan Apple Cucumber Salad with Mint Yogurt Dressing is not only heathy, but full of super delicious crunch and nutritious ingredients. Cucumbers and apples are an unusual pairing, but they work perfectly together creating a wonderous freshness that is delightfully crunchy.
- Mini Cucumbers Preparation: This recipe uses 5 mini cucumbers that are sliced lengthwise into 4ths, then diced. Feel free to slice the cucumbers any way you wish into either rounds or half-moons or both. The mini cucumbers are not peeled.
- Mini Cucumbers: Cucumbers have a lot of water which will eventually start to leach their water into the salad which can sometimes create a watery dressing. If you plan to eat the salad right away, this is not an issue. If you plan to create and serve later, we suggest keeping the cucumbers separate and mixing up individual salads as you go.
- Apples: Fresh apples typically can hold their own for quite a while; however, older apples tend to brown up right away after cutting them open. If you are concerned about slightly browned apples (from oxidation), simple place the diced apples into a bowl and sprinkle lemon juice over them as you cut them. In other words, as you cut them, put them into the bowl, swish them around in a sprinkle of lemon juice, then cut some more and continue until all the apples are diced and swished with lemon juice. Drain off the lemon juice before placing the cut apples into the salad. Additionally, you do not need to peel the apples.
- Type of Apples: Feel free to use your favorite apples in this recipe. We prefer really crisp apples. We used one Gala apple and one Cortland apple. The amount cut was 2 ½ cups of diced apples.
- Roasted Pumpkin Seeds: We used roasted and salted pumpkin seeds also known as pepitas. They add delicious flavor and a really nice crunch.
- Chopped Celery: This salad is very crunchy. Some family members loved the additional crunch and taste of celery added to the salad while others felt it really added nothing to the salad and felt the celery detracted from the flavor. If you love celery, then feel free to add some in, if you are not a huge celery fan, leave the celery out.
- Amount of Pure Maple Syrup: Our family was divided over the amount of maple syrup that was needed to create the perfect amount of sweetness. Feel free to use less or add more. Additionally, if you are using especially sweet apples, then you may wish to cut back on the maple syrup.
- Fresh Mint versus Dried Mint: We loved using dried mint in the salad dressing for the additional minty flavor. If you wish you can add fresh mint to the salad. We used both. We used dried mint in the dressing and finely chopped fresh mint in the salad for an extra burst of fresh flavor (and nutrition).
- Seasoning: This dressing is easily customizable. Additional seasoning can be added even after the salad has been dressed. Simply sprinkle in more seasonings and mix it into the salad.
- Optional – Soaked Red Onions: If you are concerned about the sharpness that can come from red onions, then we suggest lightly soaking them. The purpose of soaking the red onions is two-fold. One – it removes any sharp notes as some red onions can be overpoweringly strong. In this cucumber/apple salad, mild red onion perfectly complements the flavor. Two – it ever so slightly reduces the crunch. The red onions are still crunchy as they are raw, but soaking can mitigate some of the crunch. Simply place the chopped red onions into a small bowl, cover with warm tap water and steep for 7 minutes, then drain off the water, shake well to remove any excess water, then they are ready for the recipe.
- Amount of Sea Salt: Our family was completed divided over the amount of sea salt that was needed to perfectly season the salad. Use ½ teaspoon of sea salt as the base level and add more as needed.
- Serving after Refrigerating: This recipe is best when served immediately after making. If serving after refrigeration, remove from the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to wake up and allowing the tahini to thin out again. Cashew creams tend to thicken during refrigeration.
- Table Salt: If using table salt, you should use less table salt than the amount listed in the ingredients as sea salt crystals are larger than table salt crystals. Since table salt crystals are very fine, less table salt is required to season a dish. We would suggest starting with about 1/4 to 1/2 the amount of sea salt listed. You can always add more salt but cannot take it away. We recommend using sea salt as it is less refined than table salt.
Leftovers and Freezing:
Leftovers will generally keep 4 days in the refrigerator. Store in a covered container.
This salad cannot be frozen.
Pantry Products:
- Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
Kitchen Equipment:
- Mixing bowl
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Vegan Apple Cucumber Salad with Mint Yogurt Dressing
- Prep Time: 20 Minutes
- Total Time: 20 Minutes
- Yield: 6 Cups 1x
- Category: Salad
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Elevate your salad game with this refreshing Vegan Apple Cucumber Salad, drizzled with a zesty Mint Yogurt Dressing that will tantalize your taste buds!
Ingredients
Salad Base Ingredients:
- 5 mini cucumbers, diced *
- 2 large apples, diced *
- ½ cup finely diced red onion (+/-) *
- ½ to ¾ cup roasted pumpkin seeds *
Dressing Ingredients:
- ½ cup plain unsweetened plant yogurt
- 3 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice (+/-)
- 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup (+/-) *
- 1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons dried mint
- ½ to 1 ¼ teaspoons sea salt (+/-) *
Optional Salad Ingredients:
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh mint leaves
- ½ cup chopped celery
Instructions
- Place all the Dressing Ingredients into a small bowl, mix well until fully emulsified, then place in the refrigerator until ready to dress the salad.
- In the meantime, place all the Salad Base Ingredients into a large bowl, mix to evenly distribute the ingredients.
- Pour the dressing over the salad ingredients, mix well to thoroughly coat all the ingredients. If desired, mix in the chopped celery and/or finely chopped fresh mint leaves. Serve immediately. Refrigerate leftovers.
Notes
*Please reference the blog post for Tips for Success, Pantry Items Used, Storage and Freezing, and Kitchen Products Used.
*Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
*Servings: 6 cups (4 to 6)
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