Hola! Today we've got a healthy summer salad post coming from our girl Lauren, YBC's Marketing and Events Director. It also works perfectly for a healthy 4th of July spread, if you're feeling patriotic! Hope you enjoy! xo
I’ve always been a sucker for a good theme party especially when it comes to the Fourth of July because patriotic food and decor ideas are pretty much endless! #thanksPinterest!
If you’re looking for a sweet, healthy, and refreshing salad that’s sure to impress, then you’ve come to the right place today. *BONUS! This salad honestly couldn’t be any easier and if you’ve been following my guest posts on the blog, you probably already know that simplicity is key for me in the kitchen (Hint: it only took me 15 minutes to make this bad boy!)
Related: Guest posts from Lauren include covering this weird health trend, upcycling projects, panna cotta recipe.
I don’t know about you but watermelon is my life source in the summer – there’s nothing better then cutting up a cool, juicy, perfectly ripe watermelon and enjoying it under the warm summer sun. As an ode to my childhood summers, I’ve decided to whip up a refreshing salad using my favorite summer fruit that will not only taste great, but also make for a great patriotic party centerpiece.
Step One: Choose your greens cut everything up. I’m a big fan of a salad with varying textures and I’m pretty weird about eating foods that don’t have a crunch factor so I decided to go with a kale, shaved Brussels sprouts and red cabbage for the greens in this salad. For me, there’s nothing more obnoxious than trying to eat a salad and not being able to get the lettuce filled fork into my mouth without covering my face in salad dressing so I always make my salads chop style. #theBEST (Also, why does it taste so much better this way?!)
Step Two: Fruit! I’ve just recently jumped on the ‘fruit in salad’ trend train and I have zero regrets – I don’t know why I didn’t jump on board sooner, honestly. Since Independence Day is just around the corner (um, hello summer, slow down!) I decided to stick with your typical red, white and blue color scheme (obvs) and I picked up a watermelon, some blueberries and pears at the market this morning. I really like the mild, sweet flavor the watermelon has to offer against the tart blueberries and the pear add a nice little crunch to the party.
Step Three: Dress it up! I have a mild obsession with feta and I find that it pairs amazingly well with watermelon so I just crumbled some and sprinkled it on top – plus it's white so double win on the patriotic theme! Whoop! To this day, I’ve yet to come across a store bought dressing that I like, so I usually just throw something together quickly at home. For this salad I whisked together some olive oil, fresh squeezed lemon, a dash of balsamic vinegar, honey and some freshly cracked black pepper and it was dynamite!
Now you're ready to go get your patriotic party on and impress all your guests with the perfect salad for this year’s July Fourth bash.
Let's talk! We’d love to hear from you! What’s your favorite patriotic dish? Do you like fruit in your salad too? What are your plans for this Fourth of July?!