Mary’s Spicy Watermelon Feta Summer Salad
Choosing a Watermelon
Selecting the right watermelon is the key to this healthy and delicious summer salad. The coloring of your watermelon helps indicate the ripeness of the fruit. You should pick a melon that has a strong, consistent stripe pattern: the green stripes should be a deep, dark green, while the pale stripes should be a creamy, light yellow. It may sound strange but look for a watermelon that is a bit dull-looking. A shiny watermelon usually means the fruit has not fully ripened.
Tips for making this delicious watermelon and cucumber salad
You can prepare the ingredients for this spicy watermelon salad ahead of time, but don’t toss them together until you are ready to serve it. Simply dice or chop the cucumber, onion, jalapeño and so on and keep them in separate containers or food storage bags until ready to toss.
This refreshing watermelon salad makes it an excellent companion for one of my more robust recipes, such as my Torta Rustica.
Mary’s Summer Watermelon Salad
Ingredients
- ½ seedless watermelon, cut into ½-inch cubes
- 1 seedless cucumber, peeled and cut into ¼-inch dice
- ¼ cup finely diced red onion
- ½ jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely diced
- ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1 bunch fresh mint leaves, chopped
- 12 fresh basil leaves, finely julienned
- 2 tablespoons honey
- Zest of 1 lime
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- Pinch of sea salt
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the salad ingredients except the fresh mint and basil.
- In a jar, combine all of the ingredients for the dressing. Shake to combine. Toss the dressing with the salad. When ready to serve, add the fresh mint and basil and toss to combine.
