watermelon Archives - Taste With The Eyes

Summery Strawberry Watermelon Salad

🍓🍉🇺🇸 Strawberry Watermelon Salad 🍓🍉🇺🇸
Feta Cheese, Toasted Almonds, Balsamic Glaze

A fantastic seasonal Strawberry Watermelon Salad paired so well with our Memorial Day BBQ of grilled Tri-Tip au Jus and Corn on the Cob, it would be excellent on Flag Day or the 4th of July or really any day for a cookout this summer! ☀️

This salad was inspired by one of the dishes we enjoyed last month at Primal Steakhouse Las Vegas. It was quite a celebration at Primal where they set things on fire and employ lots of smoke in their cocktails and dishes. 🔥

Their Watermelon Salad was surpringly fresh and delightful, a perfect counterbalance to all the rich smoky foods including bone marrow shanks, bacony seared scallops, four cheese lobster mac, smoked NY steak, and more.

The service was super-fun and super-friendly. The themed atmosphere was charmingly mysterious and medieval. Guests are fully encouraged to unsheathe and pose with the assorment of swords from a coat of arms hanging on the wall, as well as take pics wearing helmets fashioned from the middle ages!

Themed restaurants unfortunately can vary widely in the quality of their food. This one impressed us by offering delicious upscale food and entertaining service, as well as a unique and memorable dining experience.

And while our dessert crème brûlée was set ablaze, the server handed me a heavy 4-foot-sword to heave into the air while all the folks in the dining room sang “happy birthday” and finished with “off with his head!”

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Pretty Watermelon Gazpacho with Blackberries

Pretty Watermelon Gazpacho with Blackberries, Tomatoes, Edible Flowers

Pretty Watermelon Gazpacho with Blackberries

watermelon cubes, grape tomatoes, micro cilantro, nasturtium whorls
edible flower petals, celery leaves, fruity olive oil

I purchased the obligatory feta cheese, tangy Bulgarian Feta to be exact, to garnish my watermelon gazpacho. But when it came time to plate my chilled soup, I thought watermelon + feta is way too predictable and the homogenous pale red soup needed some extra visual pizzazz. Additionally, I wanted to serve a soup that would appeal to my #glutenfreevegan friends… enter blackberries, grape tomatoes, and edible flowers.

The soup recipe is quite intriguing – a balance between sweet and savory -a summery marriage of juicy watermelon and red ripe tomatoes. Spicy green chile, cool cucumber and pungent red onion round out the flavors while my beloved vinagre de jerez is the spark that gives gazpacho its unique character. Good fruity olive oil adds a rich mouthfeel.

Watermelon Gazpacho Recipe

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Unique Watermelon Salad

A Unique Watermelon Salad

Watermelon Brick, Pomegranate Syrup, Feta, Cucumber
Borage, Basil, Red Onion, Cayenne, Olive Oil, Sprouted Watermelon Seeds

Welcome to My

BORAGE & BASIL
Bistro

The Borage & Basil Bistro is a bright sunny spot, a virtual place to enjoy summer’s bounty on a pretty plate. A relaxing place to sip a nice cool, crisp and melon-y Sauvignon Blanc. Fresh picked herbs and edible flowers dominate the menu.

Today’s salad special takes the ubiquitous combination of watermelon and feta and adds our eponymous borage & basil. Like bright stars falling from the summer sky…with it’s electric blue color and a faintly sweet flavor with hints of cucumber, borage makes the presentation pop! Pomegranate syrup adds sweet and tangy notes, while sprouted watermelon seeds add interest – they’re high in protein, with a nutty flavor and a crunchy texture. It’s a visually striking salad, light yet satisfying. And it just screams summer!

Unique Watermelon Salad Recipe

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Watermelon Carpaccio, Blistered Shishito, Mitsuba, Lime

Watermelon Carpaccio

Blistered Shishito Peppers, Mitsuba, Tiny Watermelon Balls
Radish Sprouts, Pistachio, Feta, Lime Vinaigrette, Korean Red Chili Powder, Lime Zest

The namesake of the Venetian Renaissance painter known for his use of brilliant reds and whites, “Carpaccio” was the inspiration for this summer treat. Giuseppe Cipriani, owner of Harry’s Bar invented the dish in 1950, the year of the great Carpaccio exhibition in Venice. It was inspired by the Contessa Amalia Nani Mocenigo, a frequent customer at Harry’s Bar whose doctor had placed her on a diet forbidding cooked meat. The original dish was simply paper-thin sliced raw beef topped with a mustard sauce. In the 63 years since its invention, the culinary term “carpaccio” has come to mean almost any dish composed of thinly-sliced raw food spread out on a platter.

In a challenge to make an elegant watermelon dish, I turn to carpaccio… plus mitsuba, a Japanese herb with a fresh, wild, sweet flavor similar to angelica which adds the herbaceous note. Then smoky grilled shishito balance the cool crisp watermelon. Radish sprouts add a pungent peppery characteristic. Just a little bit of feta adds richness and saltiness, while roasted pistachios add that nutty character. Gochugaru (Korean red chili powder) brings the heat and lime adds the bright citrusy notes. Elegant Watermelon? It’s possible.

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