As soon as hot weather hits, I crave cucumbers, which isn’t surprising, given their high water content.

My favorite way to enjoy them is so easy that I’m almost embarrassed to give the details. On the other hand, I’ve been asked many times for the “recipe,” so here goes:

Peel some cukes, seed them (cut in half lengthwise, then scrape out the seeds with a teaspoon) and slice very thinly. If you’re using English (sometimes called “burpless”) cucumbers, you don’t need to seed them.

Combine the sliced cucumber with thinly sliced red onion — I find that a good ratio is half a large onion to 3 large cukes. Then shake in some Hendrickson’s salad dressing, a sweet-and-sour bottled dressing with very little fat that’s sold at all the local supermarkets. For 3 cucumbers, you’ll need about 1/4 cup dressing. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour. This salad lasts up to a week.

For variety, add tomatoes or matchstick-sliced jicama. You can use sweet onions, but regular yellow and white onions are too strong.

Serve as a side salad, add the marinated cucumbers to sandwiches, or serve atop a green salad. Anyway you eat it, it’s really refreshing.

For something completely different, take a look at this recipe and photo from “Slurp: Drinks and Light Fare, All Day, All Night,” by Nina Dreyer Hensley, Jim Hensley and Paul Lowe ($16.99, Andrews McMeel Publishing). I haven’t tried it, but it sure looks like fun:

Cucumber Shot Glasses

Wash cucumbers; if desired, make thin vertical stripes with the tines of a fork. Cut into 2- to 3-inch pieces. Use a teaspoon or melon baller to hollow out the top portion of each cucumber piece. Put the cucumber pieces on a plate; fill with chilled vodka. After drinking the vodka, you can eat your glass!