WEEK 9: YOUR BEST WATERMELON RECIPE

Watermelon and Goat Cheese Salad with
a Verbena-Infused Vinaigrette

Photography by Sarah Shatz

    BY LOLI | SERVES 4

A&M: Not everyone is lucky enough to have lemon verbena growing in the backyard the way loli does, but this recipe is worth seeking some out. The herbal, citrus-scented vinaigrette lightly coats the sweet chunks of watermelon, and goat cheese adds a savory tang. We especially love the toasty crunch of the pistachios. We find that grinding the verbena with just a few drops of oil breaks it down quickly, and then the rest of the oil is easy to incorporate. We used only 4 ounces of goat cheese, but our watermelon wasn’t huge and had a particularly thick rind. Adjust your proportions as needed.

    1 handful fresh lemon verbena leaves (see Tips and Techniques for substitutions)

    ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

    1 teaspoon coarse salt

    ½ seedless watermelon

    ½ cup unsalted pistachios

    4 to 6 ounces fresh goat cheese

    2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

    Maldon (or other flaky) sea salt

    Freshly ground black pepper

1. Roughly chop the verbena and place it in a mortar. Add the olive oil and coarse salt. Grind for 2 to 3 minutes and let it sit for about an hour at room temperature.
2. Cut the watermelon into 1-inch cubes and place in a salad bowl (or on a platter) in the refrigerator.
3. Place the pistachios in a small pan and set over low heat. Cook just until toasted, about 5 minutes. Remove the pistachios from the pan and chop them roughly. Set aside.
4. Crumble the goat cheese.
5. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil–verbena mixture and vinegar.
6. Take the watermelon out of the fridge, sprinkle on the goat cheese, drizzle on the vinaigrette, add the pistachios, and season with Maldon sea salt and pepper to taste. Mix gently and serve!

Photography by Sarah Shatz

    TIPS AND TECHNIQUES

    If you don’t have access to verbena, try either 1½ tablespoons minced lemongrass or a mix of lemon zest (from 1 lemon) and 3 tablespoons chopped basil.

        In order to preserve the pristine beauty of this salad, you can skip mixing the salad in the last step and allow people to do this as they’re eating it.

    ABOUT THE COOK

    Lauren Sozmen is an event planner living in Larchmont, New York.

        Her best entertaining tips: “Prepare as much as you can in advance so you can enjoy the party too. Always have champagne in the fridge!”

    WHAT THE COMMUNITY SAID

    Bevi: “I assembled this for our pre-parade picnic, and it was fabulous! I took Amanda’s suggestions and used lemon zest combined with basil leaves. The vinaigrette was refreshing and very sublime. I used the zest of one lemon and a handful of basil. Not only was this a tasty variation on the usual watermelon on the 4th, it was a beautiful presentation.”