The Summer Salad

It's a little bit sad to have to confess that it's nearly August and this is my first watermelon of the summer. The melons try to woo me at the grocer and the farmer's markets, but they're size makes them so easy to turn down. Yes, yes, I know it's vain to discriminate based on weight, but watermelon simply doesn't fit in my fridge. And if it's just me eating it, that melon will be taking up precious real estate for a long, long time. But with the Aaron and Laura's small group back to its regular schedule, I new I could get rid of at least half the melon in one go.

I made a nice mess of the counter with all the watermelon and tomato juice running together on the cutting board. And I cooked an entire package of bacon while the huskie Megan is watching this week gazed intently--here's hoping that dog can digest bacon (but who's heard of a dog who can't?). I only had one near miss with the bacon when the grease popped and hit my eyelid. Phew.

The salad was a grand success, even if incredibly juicy. Justin descriptively raved about the salad--he even did the shimmy! And his wife, Melissa, asked for the recipe (so here it is). It doesn't seem like you would want to pair watermelon with tomatoes and bacon, but you do you do, you definitely do.

Watermelon-Tomato Salad: by Mark Bittman
(this salad would serve about 10 people, so keep that in mind with portions)
3 cups watermelon, cubed (that was 1/2 of a small melon)
2 medium tomatoes, diced (I used lovely yellow heirlooms)
4 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
handful fresh basil, coarsely chopped

For dressing:
1/2 olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar (or whatever you've got, but probably not balsamic)
salt and pepper to taste

Combine melon, tomatoes, bacon, feta and basil in a large salad bowl and toss to mix. It's going to be super juicy, so you could remove the seeds from the tomatoes to counter that. In a separate, smaller bowl, combine dressing ingredients and whisk until smooth. Pour over salad and toss again. Add salt and pepper to taste.