Basque Salad

Adapted from Allrecipes

When I saw the name of this salad I immediately wondered, "what is Basque?"  It turns out that Basque is a region that is located around the western end of the Pyrenees on the coast of the Bay of Biscay and straddles parts of north-eastern Spain and south-western France.  My husband lived in Argentina for 2 years, which is a country that has a lot of people of Spanish/European descent, and he remembered having this dish.  So we decided to add it to the menu for tonight.  The dish was very refreshing.  It was nice to have something so light and fresh in the midst of Winter, when most dishes are warm and heavy.  I can see including this salad in my menus year round. 

Ingredients:

• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced into thirds
• 1 large cucumber - peeled, seeded, and diced
• 1 Spanish onion - peeled, cut in half, and diced 
• Dressing:
• 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram
• chopped fresh parsley, to taste

Directions:

• In a large bowl, toss together the green and red peppers with the tomatoes, cucumber, and onion.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the vinegar and olive oil. Season with salt, pepper, and sugar. Whisk in oregano, basil, and marjoram. Continue whisking until ingredients are well blended and the oil and vinegar are emulsified.
• Pour dressing over vegetables, and toss gently with a wooden spoon. Cover, and marinate at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours, stirring frequently. Refrigerate until 1 hour before serving; then remove from the refrigerator, and let sit at room temperature. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Notes:  Consider adding yellow bell peppers.  Consider adding feta cheese.