By First full week of summer as a married person. I keep saying it in my head the way you test a new word: married. I am married. Ryan is my husband. My husband is at the firehouse tonight. These sentences still have a slight novelty that I suspect will wear off and also suspect I will miss when it does.
The summer cooking has begun in earnest: the balcony has been replanted (cherry tomatoes again because I will never stop growing cherry tomatoes, plus a new basil plant, plus Ryan pepper situation part two with a new pepper plant that he has already named Pedro, which is his right). I made a Greek salad this week with the first cucumbers from the farmers market — real tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, kalamata olives, feta, olive oil, lemon — and it was the first summer salad I have made as a married person and it was very good and also I am going to stop noting every first as a married person or this will become exhausting by August.
Kristin came for dinner Saturday. She is settled in Wicker Park and has been there six months and is either definitely moving back to Chicago permanently or possibly going back to New York, she is not sure, the situation is fluid. I made chicken on the grill and corn on the cob and we sat on the balcony and watched the city until dark. She said I seemed different. I said how. She said settled. I thought about that. I think she is right. I have been looking for settled for a long time and did not know until this particular summer that I had found it.
The blog is in summer mode: farmers market recipes, grilling guides, things that take twenty minutes because nobody wants to be inside in June. The audience has grown since the wedding post. More people, more comments, more of that thread-of-connection thing. I still feel surprised by it. I hope I always do.
That Greek salad I made this week — the one with the real cucumbers from the farmers market — got me thinking about how much I love cucumber in summer, how it tastes like the season itself. This Cucumber Melon Salad felt like the natural next step: same crispness, same ease, same quality of being exactly right for a June evening on the balcony. It’s the kind of recipe that doesn’t ask much of you, which is exactly what summer should be.
Cucumber Melon Salad
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 10 minutes | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 large English cucumber, thinly sliced
- 2 cups cantaloupe, cubed or balled
- 1 cup honeydew melon, cubed or balled
- 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, torn
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/4 teaspoon flaky sea salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Prep the produce. Thinly slice the cucumber into rounds. Cube or ball the cantaloupe and honeydew into bite-sized pieces. Tear the mint leaves roughly by hand.
- Make the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice and honey until the honey is fully dissolved.
- Combine. Add the cucumber, cantaloupe, and honeydew to a large serving bowl. Drizzle the lime-honey dressing over the top and toss gently to coat.
- Finish and serve. Scatter the torn mint over the salad. Season with flaky sea salt and black pepper. Serve immediately, or refrigerate for up to 30 minutes before serving for a colder, crisper result.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 75 | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0g | Carbs: 19g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 115mg