Watermelon and Arugula Salad

Watermelon and Arugula Salad... Perfect for Summer!

My husband P.J. is a HUGE fan of watermelon and arugula, so I’d been meaning to adapt and serve this recipe for a while. I actually stumbled across it in my pre-Paleo days and had it earmarked for summer. At the Farmer’s Market on Saturday, we stumbled across some seedless yellow watermelon (crazy!) – that was all the prompting I needed to make this salad.

PALEO DISCLAIMER: You’ll notice that this recipe does have some shaved Parmesan in it. Yes, I do use high-quality cheese from time-to-time, although I’ve cut it from my everyday eating. The recipe is delicious with a little bit of Parm if you’re into it, and it’s just as tasty without if you’re not. Totally up to you!

Watermelon and Arugula Salad
Quantity: 8
Time: 5-10 minutes of prep
Paleo Grade: C (Would be an A without the cheese!)

• 3/4 pound arugula
• 2 pounds seedless red (and yellow if you can find it!) watermelon, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
• 2/3 cup high quality olive oil
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• Juice from 1 large grapefruit
• 1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4-1/2 cup of shaved Parmesan cheese (a vegetable peeler works great for this!)

1. Place the arugula and watermelon in your large salad serving bowl.
2. In a small bowl, whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, grapefruit juice, salt, and pepper.
3. Toss enough dressing with the arugula and watermelon to lightly coat and transfer remaining dressing to a serving dish.
4. Place your shaved Parmesan in a serving bowl so your guests can top their salads as desired.

The salad was very light and fresh… I think I’ll try it again with fresh Texas peaches – another great summertime tradition around here.