Summer Salad of Watermelon, Blueberries & Arugula with Mint

I love the fruits of summer.  Stone fruits, berries, melons and figs...there isn't enough time or enough meals in the day to get my fill.  Every time I go to the store this time of year, I come home with some kind of fruit that I just couldn't pass up.  This week we have had watermelon, cherries, grapes, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and peaches filling the fridge and the fruit bowl on the kitchen counter.  I eat a big bowl of fruit every morning for breakfast...and make desserts every chance I get...ice cream, tarts, pies, cakes, cobblers, compotes and crisps.  But even this isn't enough to use up all of the bounty.   More and more I am tucking these fruits of summer into refreshing and light salads—just right for lunch...or a nice addition to a summer dinner. 

 

Last week I taught a class at The Community Mercantile that included the delicious Watermelon and Avocado salad that I posted last summer.  The watermelon I purchased in the store for my class was so beautiful—juicy, sweet and "seedless"—that I got an extra one for myself.  We have of course enjoyed it in big fat slices, but I also took advantage of the fact that it was seedless to cut it into small cubes and pair it with blueberries in a salad.  The combination is visually stunning.  And it tastes pretty great, too.  

 

Watermelon & Blueberry Salad with Arugula & Mint

1 T. strained lime juice
1 t. red wine vinegar
1/2 t. honey
2 T. olive oil
salt & pepper, to taste

3 c. 1/2- to 2/3-inch cubes of seedless watermelon (see notes)
1 c. blueberries, well rinsed
3 oz. feta, broken into 1/2-inch pieces
1/3 to 1/2 c. thinly sliced cucumber (halve or quarter the cucumber lengthwise and scoop out the seeds before slicing)
1 1/2 oz. (2 small handfuls) arugula
1/2 c. mint leaves (measured by dropping into the cup—don't pack them down), left whole or cut in wide chiffonade if the leaves are very large

Make the vinaigrette:  Place the lime juice, red wine vinegar, honey, salt and pepper in a small bowl and whisk to combine.  Add the olive oil in a thin stream, whisking constantly.  Taste and correct the seasoning.  Set aside.



Place the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and drizzle in the vinaigrette, using just enough to lightly coat all of the ingredients. Toss to combine.  Taste and correct the seasoning with salt & pepper.

Mound the salad onto a large platter (or individual serving plates) and serve.  Serves 4.

Notes:  

• You will need a total of 1 cup of fruit (diced watermelon and blueberries) per person.  I like the ratio of 3 parts watermelon to 1 part blueberries, but you should of course vary this to suit your tastes.
• The watermelon and feta should be in pieces that echo the size of your blueberries
• You may of course make this salad with a traditional watermelon with seeds, but you will need to remove the seeds...which is a bit of a tedious job.
• I used a small Persian cucumber from my farmers' market to make this salad but any cucumber will do nicely.

Printable Recipe

 

Watermelon, Avocado & Feta Salad with Mint



 
Last week I received an email from a friend asking if I had a favorite recipe featuring watermelon. I had to admit that I didn't. When I eat watermelon, I usually just enjoy a big, drippy slice...it doesn't need much else. In my response though I mentioned that a very popular way to serve it was in a Greek-style salad with feta and mint and that a Google search should turn up several recipes.

This whole exchange made me hungry for a watermelon salad. So when I was confronted by a huge display of watermelons at the farmers' market on Saturday I naturally bought one. Today's post is one of the things I did with it...my version of the aforementioned popular and delicious salad.

As is occasionally the case, I don't really have an exact recipe to share. The truth is, you don't need one....just prepare all of your individual ingredients and then begin layering them on individual plates—or one large platter—in amounts that look good to you. Because I am aware that some readers are uncomfortable attempting a recipe without some kind of guidelines for quantities, I will at least give an estimate for per person quantities.

For the watermelon, if you can get your hands on a seedless variety, your work will be easier. My watermelon—though juicy and sweet—had lots of seeds. Removing them is a bit tedious, but worth it for a salad. To prepare the watermelon, cut it into manageable wedges. Your eventual goal is 1/4- to 1/3-inch thick triangular shaped pieces. I had a football shaped watermelon that weighed about 10 pounds—I cut it in half cross-wise and then cut each half in quarters lengthwise. I then cut thin (1/4– to 1/3-inch thick) cross-wise slices, removed the rind and halved and seeded these slices.

You should cut your watermelon in whatever way makes sense to you, given its original shape and size. For each person figure about 3/4 of a pound of untrimmed watermelon. After trimming, the weight of the flesh per person will be about 6 oz.

The avocado and feta should also be prepared in 1/4- to 1/3-inch thick slices. After halving, pitting and peeling the avocado, slice it either lengthwise or crosswise. I did the latter since it made the slices of avocado similar in size to the slices of watermelon. Use half an avocado per person. For the feta, simply slice it (purchase feta in blocks in brine...not in crumbles...feta in brine tastes better and will keep longer) and break the slices into random-sized chunks. Weigh out about 1 1/2 oz. per person.

The remaining ingredients are pitted Kalamata olives, red onion and fresh mint. The olives should be halved lengthwise. I used 5 or 6 large olives per person. The red onion, should be sliced very thinly (use a mandolin), rinsed under cold running water and blotted dry. The quantity of onion is completely up to you. I purchase beautiful tiny red onions (about 2 oz. each) at my farmers' market—they are perfect for a small household. When I made our salads I only used half of one for two of us. Typically I find raw onion to be overpowering, so I don't use much. But the onion added really nice crunch and flavor to this salad and I would not hesitate to use them with a heavier hand.

Just as with the onion, the quantity of mint is up to you. I love mint—and it is particularly refreshing in this salad—so I used a lot. If the leaves are large, tear them into smaller pieces or stack them and cut them into a wide chiffonade. If the leaves are tiny and delicate, just use them as they are.

To pull it all together, the salad needs a tangy vinaigrette. The first time I made it I made a simple vinaigrette with 1/2 T. red wine vinegar, 1/4 t. honey and 1 1/2 T. olive oil (for two salads). On another occasion I used a shallot-less version of the vinaigrette I use on my Chicken salad with Cantaloupe, Arugula, Feta and Mint. Both were good, but I think the salad would be just as good with a simple drizzle of olive oil followed by a drizzle of red wine vinegar or a generous squeeze of lemon.  The ease of dressing it this last way is much more in keeping with the casual nature of this salad.

To serve the salad, build it on individual plates or on one large platter. First, place half of the watermelon on the plate. Follow this with half the avocado, half the cheese, and half of the onions, olives and mint. Season with salt & pepper and drizzle with some of the vinaigrette. Repeat with all of the elements and serve.



Update 9/25/2012:  I just ran across an extraordinarily beautiful version of this salad on a friend's pinterest board.  I saw it earlier this summer (on another pinterest board...before I wrote this post)--but didn't bother to look for the original post when I prepared my salad (I just remembered the image of the beautiful green of the avocado against the pink of the watermelon flesh).  Anyway I'm very glad I ran across it again so I can share the link.  It is a really lovely salad...it will inspire you too!