Rice Salad with Canary Melon
In this week’s CSA, I received apples, green beans, potatoes, kale, and apple cider. I handed off the cider and kale to my co-worker since I still have cider from the apple festival and I hate kale. She now hates kale, too, so it will probably go to our co-worker who has farm animals that can eat it.
I also received a weird yellow squash that I later learned was not actually a squash, but a canary melon. Canary melons have a sweet flavor close to that of a cantaloupe. While trying to figure out what it was, I came across an Italian recipe for a rice salad with prosciutto and melon. I adapted the recipe below.
The rice is from Kaufman Fruit Farms. It is not locally grown, but it is locally produced. The mozzarella is from the grocery store, but there is a local cheese business that makes mozzarella. The prosciutto is actually bacon from Anschuetz Farm because I didn’t have any prosciutto. I blanched the bacon to make it as close to prosciutto as I could.
The photograph of the salad because it does not do the taste justice. I’ve got to remake it and take better pictures. Despite the bland photo, the flavors are there and they are delicious. The sweetness of the melon combined with the salty goodness of the bacon goes perfectly with the smooth flavor of the rice and mild mozzarella.
Rice Salad with Canary Melon
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown rice
- 1/2 canary melon chopped
- 1 cup mozzarella cubed
- 1/8-1/4 lb blanched bacon or prosciutto sliced
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Cook the rice as directed. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool.
- Once cool, mix the rice, melon, mozzarella, and bacon or prosciutto.
- Mix the olive oil and balsamic and drizzle on top.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve.