Friday, August 5, 2011

Watermelon and Feta Salad and Giveaway Winnings!

It's summertime, and we need to spend less time in the hot kitchen as much as possible. Who wants to spend a long time cooking, and baking and heating up your kitchen when you have other options? A nice refreshing salad, or a "no bake" dessert...but then again, a simple pasta dish is always a favorite, which we have almost every day, and not worry about exctra fat and calories, if it's a light simple fresh tomato sauce. This salad has it all, watermelon, feta cheese, cucumbers, and baby watercress, red onions, and a drizzle of a refreshing, fresh lime, white wine vinegar, and extra virgin olive oil.
I'm linking this to Cookbook Sundays,  @Mom's Sunday Cafe
The recipe calls for baby arugula, but since I could not find it at my supermarket, I did find baby watercress, which is not bland, by far! It has a "kick" to it of a slight spicy-bitter flavor, as does the arugula has. You can substitute mesculon if your don't like the sharp flavor of either of the two.

I've been totally MIA all day yesterday, and came home late. All I did was heat up some leftovers and plopped down on my sofa to watch the missed season 3 of the TRUE BLOOD series which I've got hooked on, thanks to my son, and wife...LOL it's definitely "bloody" and scary at times but I love this series. They are on the 4th season now....and I don't want to miss out on any episodes!

I am so happy to win this beautiful healthy recipe cookbook by Joy Bauer...the giveaway hosted by Claudia, @Blog's Got Heart  and What's Cookin' Italian Style.  Thank you, Claudia!

I still haven't mentioned about this amazing Macaron book by the author, Jill Colonna, such a generous giveaway hosted by Marsha, @The Harried Cook  I have never made macarons, and I'm so excited to learn from the best!
Thank you, Marsha, and Jill!



Watermelon and Feta Salad
adapted from: Woman's Day magazine,
Aug. 2011 issue

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1 Tbsp lime juice
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 sm. red onion thinly sliced
1 cucumber (seeds scraped) sliced into half- moons




1 1lb. seedles watermelon cut into small triangles
3 cups baby arugula, or baby watercress, or mesculin salad, or any lettuce of your choice chopped
1/2 cup Feta cheese crumbled








In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, and lime juice, salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, remove and discard the watermelon rind. Cut the watermelon into thin, 2 inch triangles pieces.
Layer all the ingredients, top with Feta, and serve the dressing separately in a small serving pitcher, or in the same small bowl, to drizzle on for individual servings with a table spoon, or small ladle.

note: you can toss the dressing on the entire salad, but you might lose the pretty effect by mixing it all together, and cheese will crumble even more

Guaranteed to be a favorite summer salad...but as you can see, pasta is always a "must" in our family!
Enhanced by Zemanta

28 comments:

Petra said...

Különlegesen finom ez a saláta, nagyon tetszik. Ki fogom próbálni, Köszi a receptet. :)))
Gratulálok a nyereményeidhez, remélem készítesz belőlük majd valamit és itt is megmutatod. ;D

Raksha said...

congrats for the win dear.

Mari @ Mari's Cakes said...

Never tasted a salad with watermelon, but the combination looks scrumptious :)

Hugs

mangiabella said...

elisabeth this looks so refreshing and fabulous!! I loooove watermelon in salad and particularly this combination, I will definitely make your salad and think of you!!! I'm with you, I could eat pasta every single day with no remorse!! Those cookbooks sound fantastic, congrats and can't wait to see what you cook up :) have a glorious weekend bella, and a relaxing one!!

Bianka said...

Micsoda szépéges színe van a salátának

Jacqueline said...

I love this salad and know just how good it is, however, I thought it was avocado slices in the first photo and not cucumber and now I am craving this salad with avocado.

laurie said...

this salad is so popular,, I see it everywhere, I 'm curious for sure,, have a wonderful weekend.

Dzoli said...

i HAVE NEVER TRIED THIS COMBINATION BUT OD FEEL IT WORKS NICE TOGETHER;)

Wendy said...

This salad is GORGEOUS...and I'm sure it's just as tasty! I'm betting feta and watermelon are a wonderful combo!!!

Veronica's Kitchen said...

The salad is so refreshing. Good luck with the new cookbooks, there must be some real nice recipes in there! Have a good weekend!

claudia @ http://pegasuslegend-whatscookin.blogspot.com/2011/08/veal-scaloppine-mushroom-marsala.html said...

Thanks for the sweetest mention my dear foodie friend glad you won and like this book! I just love watermelon and the amazing way you put this together in a salad~ I just wished we were neighbors ! love it great job dear...

The Harried Cook said...

Lovely looking salad there, Elisabeth! :) Sounds yummy... I love anything with feta! :) Great post... You're welcome for the giveaway! I didn't really do much - you must thank Jill and Waverley Books who sponsored the prize :) And congrats on the other book too! Looks like a good book! :)

ping said...

Refreshing! Hey, I just got Jill's book. Had my girl bring it back with her on her vacation here this week. You're so fortunate to have won both books. Nice things happen to nice folks :D

Lyndsey said...

This is a beautiful summer salad!

I am a big fan of True Blood. I started by reading the books, love the books too...little different from the series both are good!

Suhaina said...

Wow.... Congrads...for winning the two wonderful books. Hope to see more good recipes from those books.

I am so happy that I won your book give away...
I could not believe it... Many thanks and I eagerly waiting to lay my hands on it. This is my first winning. Many thanks to u dear.

Lilla said...

Ciao Elisabeth, sai che anche io ho appena visto la terza serie di True Blood?! Mi sembra un po' peggiorata, ma forse succede quasi sempre così con i sequel...altre serie dall'America che seguo: Fringe e Dexter
L'insalata con cocomero è una novità per me, bella e molto adatta in giornate calde come questa...

Junia said...

i love watermelon. i had watermelon salad back in michigan and i loved it! btw, winning giveaways is the best! i love it :D

Angie's Recipes said...

Congratulations!
I had a watermelon salad with feta last week too, so I know how fresh and good this tastes! Great clicks!

Jill Colonna said...

That looks a most refreshingly amazing salad - just perfect! I am so happy that you won the giveaway of Mad About Macarons and excited to hear about your macarons. Hugs xo

Pacheco Patty said...

Hi Elizabeth, talk about a fresh and satisfying salad, I think you've created the perfect one for my taste! I have a baby watermelon in the refrigerator and I'm trying this salad for dinner tonight, thanks for sharing;-)

Miz Helen said...

Hi Elizabeth,
This looks like a perfect salad for the hot weather that we are having right now. I love the combination of Watermelon and Feta. I looked for a email contact for you and I couldn't find one. I left you a little note on FPT. Email me if you can, because when you try and go to your blog sometimes blogger says it does not exist. It is always good to see you.
Miz Helen

Emma said...

Some nice books you've got there!

I love watermelon and feta together, so unuusal but such a good pairing. Such a fresh lovely salad :)

Lizzy said...

Hi, Lizzie! I'm finally home for good! SO much to catch up on...you know, the ol' inbox! Look at your gorgeous salad! I've been dying to try feta with watermelon...and your salad looks just perfect...especially for this hot time of year. And congratulations on your cookbook wins! Two excellent ones...now you'll have to join me in baking some macarons. My next batch will be this winter when the humidity isn't so awful...I think they will be even better :) Thanks for saying hello, my friend...wishing you a great week...and I'll check in with you again soon~ xoxo

Becky said...

Elisabeth-
I love your watermelon salad with the feta. It looks so cool and refreshing! and gorgeous pics. I echo Lizzy's comments about being home for good, and so much to catch up on.

I won Jill Bauer's cookbook, too. I can't wait to
make something from it.

Lin Ann said...

That is so beautiful! What a coincidence - I made a watermelon salad last Monday while on yet another vacation (will post soon). I love yours though with the cucumber and onion. Will definitely try that combination next time!

Melynda said...

Elisabeth, thanks for sharing this with Cookbook Sundays! I bet the feta goes nicely with the sweet juicy melon.

Vicki Bensinger said...

I love watermelon as you might guess from all my recipe posts and watermelon knife giveaway but I haven't tried this recipe. It sounds wonderful, light and easy to prepare. I will definitely have to try this.

Nami | Just One Cookbook said...

Oh what a yummy salad! I love it! I need to add watermelon into my salad too! And you got TWO books!? How lucky! Enjoy reading them. :-)