Recipe | Watermelon and Shrimp summer salad

The majority of today was spent working on the prettiest design plan for a client's powder room (Hi, Suzanne!).  Summers are tricky for me and my decorating business. I really need a quiet house, without interruptions, for a few hours, to find my creative groove, so with Andrew spending the day at my parents and Charlie at the pool with his Dad, I took advantage and tried to pretend it wasn't a Saturday afternoon.  Tonight, I have plans to make a key lime pie after I publish this quick post and think up a dinner menu for tomorrow.  We are hosting a belated Father's Day celebration for my Dad and hopefully seeing some fireworks if the rain holds out.

I've been meaning to blog this recipe for um, the last 6 years.... It's one that a colleague gave me many years ago when I was still working at Procter & Gamble.  It was an instant summer favorite.  Over time I made a few tweaks, adding avocado and more cilantro,  adding less red onion.  It is perfect for sweltering days, when you don't want to cook but prefer not to eat out.  Full of so many of my favorite summer flavors like fresh squeezed lime juice, watermelon and cilantro.  The shrimp and avocado make it filling enough to serve as a meal, along with a baguette and a cold glass of Rose.  It takes less than 10 minutes to assemble and it is sooooo delicious and unexpected.  It would be perfect for this holiday weekend if you want to pass on the burgers and hotdogs.  Enjoy!

Recipe | Shrimp and Watermelon Summer Salad
4-5 cups watermelon, cut into chunks
1/4 of a medium sized red onion, diced
2 avocados, chopped
1 pound cooked shrimp, tails cut off
1 bunch cilantro, diced
2 jalapeños, seeded and diced
the juice of 1 lime
1 tsp honey
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

Place watermelon, red onion, avocado, shrimp, jalapeno, shrimp and cilantro in a large bowl.  Drizzle with lime juice, olive oil, honey, salt and pepper and toss to combine all the ingredients.  Let sit 10-15 minutes to allow flavors to blend.