Darina Allen: my summer salad with watermelon, tomato, radish and summer herbs

Name: Salad of Watermelon, Radish, Tomato and Summer Herbs
Prep time: 20 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: Ingredients:; 1 thick slice of good bread, sourdough or pan loaf, 150g approx.; A large chunk of watermelon, about 750g with rind (¼ melon approx.); 8 ripe tomatoes (approx 850g); Flaky sea salt and freshly cracked pepper; 6 radishes (approx 100g); 4-6 spring onions (approx 50g); 1 fistful fresh mint, coarsely chopped; 1 fistful flat parsley sprigs; Dressing:; 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil; 2 tbsp chardonnay vinegar or freshly squeezed lemon juice; 2 tsp runny honey; flaky sea salt and freshly cracked pepper

"As ever, I urge you to think about planting some of your own fruit and can you imagine the joy of picking cherries from your very own cherry tree?"

Sat, 22 Jul, 2023 - 02:00

Darina Allen

This week, I thought I would pick just three glorious summer fruits - and share a salad recipe with one of them.

I love cherries, but mostly I love to eat them fresh, rather than cooked. That’s unless, of course, one can find morello cherries which make the most delicious pies. They are smaller and far more tart but cook deliciously with a bittersweet flavour.

How about tossing some stoned cherries into a ‘green’ salad? Cherries also add a delicious pop of sweetness to savoury dishes.

I like to keep a beautiful organic watermelon as a standby in the fridge all summer long, what could be more versatile — a cool, super refreshing dessert in a twinkling or a juicy addition to both sweet and savoury salads.

All these fruits are standby desserts during the high summer days. What’s not to love about a big bowl of cherries — no need for any further embellishment.

And how about ripe raspberries piled high with a little bowl of caster sugar and a jug of rich, yellow Jersey cream?

As ever, I urge you to think about planting some of your own fruit and can you imagine the joy of picking cherries from your very own cherry tree?

We are super fortunate to have lots of grandchildren living close by, one of my greatest summer joys is to watch and sometimes join them when they are deliriously picking berries straight off the bushes, what wonderful childhood memories they will have…

It’s worth planting some raspberry canes or fruit trees just for the sheer joy of watching their delight, not to mention learning where their food comes from — direct from Mother Nature rather than just a supermarket shelf…

Salad of Watermelon, Radish, Tomato and Summer Herbs

recipe by:Darina Allen

A delicious starter or summer lunch.

Salad of Watermelon, Radish, Tomato and Summer Herbs

Servings

Preparation Time

20 mins

Total Time

20 mins

Course

Side

Ingredients

Ingredients:
1 thick slice of good bread, sourdough or pan loaf, 150g approx.
A large chunk of watermelon, about 750g with rind (¼ melon approx.)
8 ripe tomatoes (approx 850g)
Flaky sea salt and freshly cracked pepper
6 radishes (approx 100g)
4-6 spring onions (approx 50g)
1 fistful fresh mint, coarsely chopped
1 fistful flat parsley sprigs
Dressing:
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp chardonnay vinegar or freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tsp runny honey
flaky sea salt and freshly cracked pepper

Method

Preheat a grill.
Tear the bread into uneven chunks, 2cm approx. Toast the bread under the grill, toss and continue until crispy all over.
Remove the rind from the watermelon, cut into uneven chunks and put into a bowl. Cut the tomatoes into biggish chunks, season with flaky sea salt and freshly cracked pepper. Halve or quarter the radishes and add. Trim and slice both the white and green parts of the spring onions at an angle and sprinkle over the other ingredients. Add the radish leaves if fresh.
To make the dressing:
Whisk the olive oil, vinegar or freshly squeezed lemon juice, honey and seasoning in a bowl.
To assemble:
Drizzle the dressing over the salad, toss, add the crusty bread. Sprinkle on the freshly chopped mint and parsley sprigs. Toss again. Taste and correct the seasoning. Pile up on a serving dish. Scatter with a few more sprigs of mint and serve as soon as possible.