We had another rooftop adventure last weekend.
For Memorial Day, we snuck onto the rooftop of my in-laws' building. I say snuck, but we technically had permission from the building manager. Their building has more communal amenities, so the building management has been stricter about ensuring people don't congregate, but my father-in-law has a way with words. We're lucky to have him around.
We got to their rooftop and were somewhat appalled by what we saw. Their rooftop looked like it had been to Oz and back. All the furniture was overturned and some of the tiles had been ripped up. In order to hit the "push this button to exit," you had to climb over a treacherous caution-taped hole. To say it wasn't aesthetically pleasing is an understatement. We are a family of aesthetics after all, especially considering our theatrical background.
As if that wasn't enough, it was blazing hot on Memorial Day with nary a breeze. The weather in Philly had been consistently peaking in the high 70°s-low 80°s, but today's forecast showed a high of 88° F and the sky was clear as can be. We're originally from Florida, so this didn't seem like it was going to be a concern. Boy, were we wrong! Not to mention we had all been fasting and it was now 2:30pm, so patience was running a bit short amongst all of us.
We quickly and impatiently turned some furniture back over in a spot far from the entrance so in the unlikely event of a passerby we wouldn't immediately be seen. The entire set up was so haphazard that I found myself tripping constantly while trying to serve lunch. Nevertheless, we quickly set up our abundant picnic and devoured our meal, putting sun lotion on Finn every five or so minutes despite the fact he was completely covered by the hood of his stroller and a straw hat slightly too big for his head. We were engaging in a personal photoshoot and contemplating having our lemon olive oil cake when we agreed that it was simply too hot outside. Our entire time from start to finish only lasted around 20 minutes. But can you blame us? There were enough beads of sweat dripping from our scalps that you'd think we were in a Hilary Duff music video.
It seemed appropriate to be eating hamburgers and hotdogs, but in retrospect it might've been wiser to ensure our entire lunch was cold. A chilled pasta salad, maybe a deli tray, or even just a bowl of frozen grapes and pineapple, or an ice cream bathtub. Thankfully, we did have a few dishes that were previously refrigerated. My rooftop potato salad made a triumphant come back, but more importantly was the introduction of my Bath & Body Works salad.
So, what's in Bath & Body Works salad?
I hope this image provides you with a vivid throw back, as well as the answer to what's in Bath & Body Works salad.
But if you must know the specifics, I've got all that info below.
With a cool towel and a cool cucumber,
~c.j.
BATH & BODY WORKS SALAD
PREP TIME: 10 minutes
ASSEMBLY: 5 minutes
YIELD: 8 picnic sized portions, or 4 dinner sized portions
INGREDIENTS
FOR THE DRESSING
1/4 c olive oil
3 tbsp guava molasses, or any other fruit molasses
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp spicy brown mustard
FOR THE SALAD
5 oz baby arugula
2 lbs cubed watermelon
1/2 lb cucumber, sliced on a diagonal (I prefer mini Persian cucumbers, but the big ones will work just as well as long as you peel the skin off)
small handful of cilantro leaves (maybe 2 tbsp max)
3 1/2 oz (half a block) feta cheese
3 tbsp roasted salted cashews, chopped
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, for finishing
DIRECTIONS
For the dressing: in an empty bottle or mason jar, combine olive oil, guava molasses, honey, red wine vinegar, 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt, and spicy mustard. Put the lid on, and shake vigorously to emulsify. Store in the refrigerator up to 1 week. (I found that this dressing didn't want to emulsify when whisked in a bowl, so shaking in a mason jar is the best way to ensure you don't have a broken dressing.)
Assemble the salad: arrange baby arugula in an even bed on a platter. Place watermelon and cucumber sporadically overtop the arugula. Tuck cilantro leaves in with the watermelon and cucumber. Top with feta, cashed, and sprinkling of cayenne pepper. (You can stop here and keep it in the refrigerator until ready to serve.)
Just before serving, finish with a sprinkling of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, then drizzle dressing overtop.
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