Watermelon radishes tend to be abundant this time of yea. Sometimes it can be challenging to channel all that culinary creativity into a radish, even one this beautiful. Recently I stumbled upon another great food blog called Alexandra’s Kitchen– this happens to me a lot – that had such a unique take on watermelon radish salad that I had to share. Enjoy! (A little side note: Alexandra is passionate about helping people get the most out of their CSAs…lucky us!)
Watermelon Radish, Orange, and Goat Cheese Salad
Adapted from a recipe by Alexandra Stafford, of Alexandra’s KitchenMakes 4 servings.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 small Red Onion
- 2 to 3 tbsp. White Balsamic Vinegar
- Kosher Salt and Pepper to taste
- 2 – 3 Watermelon Radishes, scrubbed clean (It is not necessary to peel Radishes.)
- 2 – 3 Oranges, Clementines, Grapefruit, etc. (I used Cara Cara Oranges, which are sweet, pretty, and delicious.)
- Handful of Walnuts, toasted and chopped
- Goat Cheese to taste (At Main Street, we can’t stop raving about 2 Kids Goat Farm. Visit their site to learn where their cheese is sold!)
- Chives, minced (Optional, but they add some nice color)
- Olive Oil to taste
Instructions:
- To toast Walnuts, preheat oven to 350ºF. Place Walnuts on baking sheet and cook for 10 – 12 minutes or until slightly browned and fragrant. Dump Walnuts into tea towel and rub off skins. Remove Walnuts from towel, leaving skins behind. (If you wish to get more of the skin off, place Walnuts in a strainer and shake aggressively.)
- Mince Onion Place in small bowl. Cover with 2 – 3 tbsp. Vinegar. Add a pinch of Salt and set aside.
- Cut off one end of Radish. Leave other end intact to act as handle. Thinly slice on mandoline or by hand. (Note: Using a mandoline makes this step much easier and will create consistently thin slices.)
- Arrange Radish slices on platter. Fold some slices so they’re not all squished down in one flat layer. Sprinkle generously with Salt and Pepper.
- Cut off each end of each Orange. Squeeze each end over Radishes, then discard. Use a sharp knife to remove skin from oranges. Cut in between membranes to remove each slice. Squeeze remaining membrane all over Radishes to extract any leftover juice. Scatter Oranges over Radishes.
- Scatter Walnuts and Goat Cheese to taste over Radishes and Oranges. Pour macerated Onions and Vinegar over top. Drizzle Olive Oil to taste (1- 2 tbsp.) over top. Sprinkle with Chives.
- Let sit a few minutes (or longer — it benefits from a brief rest) before serving.
*Image courtesy of: http://www.alexandracooks.com/2014/12/24/watermelon-radish-orange-goat-cheese-salad/.
