Watermelon Feta Salad with Mint and Basil
watermelon feta
Watermelon is so refreshing in the warmer months! It reminds me of summertime growing up in Michigan, because it was something we would always eat at summer camp. I remember, while eating watermelon, all of us girls would place three seeds on our forehead, each with a name of a boy at camp. The last seed to fall off was the boy we were going to marry. Thankfully this never came true, BUT every time I eat watermelon I think of doing this at summer camp!
Besides summer camp stories...I love watermelon, because it's so light and sweet with a slight crunch. It's a perfect compliment to something salty like feta. Normally you see this salad with mint, but I also included basil for another herbaceous flavor. I have been using basil with everything lately, and it in this particular salad it balances the bright lemony mint with a subtle licorice flavor. Basil also goes really well with balsamic vinegar. The balsamic in this salad adds nice acidity to level out the sweet watermelon. Lastly olive oil...it just makes everything better, so I like to finish it with a little drizzle.
This Watermelon Feta Salad is a perfect summer salad! If you want to make it ahead of time I recommend cutting everything and storing it separately. Then tear the herbs and assemble right before serving.
Quick Tip: I find this salad is more refreshing when the watermelon is really cold. Make sure to cut the watermelon ahead of time so that you can have that nice cold bite of sweetness.
watermelon feta
watermelon feta
watermelon feta
watermelon feta
watermelon feta
watermelon feta
watermelon feta
Watermelon Feta Salad with Mint and Basil
Author:
Maria Provenzano
Ingredients
1 small watermelon
6-8 oz feta (depending on how much big the watermelon is)
about 1/3 cup mint; torn into small pieces; add as much as you like
about 1/3 cup basil; torn into small pieces; add as much as you like
balsamic
olive oil
Instructions
*Cut the watermelon into small squares; do this by first cutting the top and the bottom of the water melon so that it can sit flat; cut the rest of the outside off including all of the white parts; then cut off the rounded edges; cut into equal sections one way; cut into equal sections the other way; see pictures for more detail
*Cut the feta into small squares; you could also crumble it if you like smaller pieces
*Combine the watermelon and feta
*Lightly toss in the torn mint and basil
*Drizzle lightly with a little olive oil and as much balsamic as you like
*Make sure to taste it to see if you need more herbs or balsamic
*Serve!
*If you want it to look really pretty place the watermelon and feta on a plate first and then top with the rest of the ingredients