Cantaloupe and blueberry salad

Ever see a recipe and know that you need to make it as soon as possible, even before all the other recipes that you have already lined up? That's what happened when I saw this cantaloupe and blueberry salad over at Indian Simmer. 

New melon baller...

The preparation was so simple, but it looked so elegant; I had to make it that night to serve with dinner.  I was so excited, I even bought a melon baller.

Don't hate on our soccer ball bowls!

Cantaloupe and blueberry salad
Adapted from Indian Simmer

I made a few changes to the original recipe, which are reflected here.  Mainly, I nixed the red pepper flakes and toasted almonds; feel free to add those if you'd like.  Next time, I would probably add toasted walnuts or pecans for some crunch.  I only used half of a cantaloupe for the salad, which was more than enough as a side dish split between the two of us.  If you want to make it a main dish for lunch, etc., use an entire melon and double the ingredients. 

Ingredients

• 1/2 medium size cantaloupe
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1/4-1/2 tsp salt*
• 1/2 - 1 tbsp lemon juice*
• 1 tbsp chopped sweet basil leaves (mint would also be good)

Directions:

Using a melon baller, scoop out bite sized pieces of cantaloupe, reserving the melon shell.  Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl (I let it sit for an hour or so in the fridge to let the flavors meld).  Serve the salad in the reserved melon bowl. 

*Note: If you decrease the lemon like I did, be sure to decrease the salt like I didn't; it will balance the flavors a bit more.