My husband and I recently decided to road trip to the Virginia oceanfront and visit my niece.  From the D.C. area, this is a trip that should take a few hours… unless it’s summertime, in which case it takes a few more.  After sitting in traffic for about two hours, we were painfully aware of the fact that we’d only gone 45 miles. So we did what we’re glad not too many other people do: hopped off Interstate 95 and hit up a country road, leaving the congested, bumper-to-bumper world behind us.  I couldn’t be more glad that we did.

City mouse, country mouse…

This may sound a tad myopic, but I had no idea what this part of Virginia looked like.  I’m rather caught up in the bubble of city life, farm stands in the middle of intersections like Dupont Circle, and patio gardens decorating the high rise condo units all around me.  In fact, there’s lots and lots of country in the state I live in- and it’s not all that far from where I live!  As we detoured from the major traffic and drove along a winding road, I passed one farm after another.  There was acres and acres of corn fields, horse stables, and little farm stands dotting the road.  I saw stores with names like Big John’s and it occurred to me that everyone in that area knows exactly who Big John is.  There were no Starbucks, but there was Anne’s coffee shop where the tiny parking lot was packed with cars and locals drinking coffee on the little front porch.  Every other intersecting road was a dirt road with a modest sign announcing the farm that could be found by making the turn.  The town grocery store was no bigger than a doctor’s office and sold everything from wine to band-aids.  There was no slinky-effect traffic.  No horns urging people to move faster.  No line of cars in front of us nor in back.  No beeping, honking, loud music, swerving 18-wheelers… nothing. Just us and our own little country road.

And so we stopped…

There was no way I was going to make it down this road without stopping at a farm stand. Where we stopped was nothing more than a little wooden stand with barrels of watermelons, ambrosia cantaloupes and other vegetables run by one young girl accompanied by a couple of friendly dogs.  Our little city car was no match for the John Deere we parked next to.  We immediately got our hands on a huge watermelon, some cucumber, corn and a basket of vibrantly red tomatoes.

Three salads…

With all the fresh produce and a mere week before my husband and I leave for vacation, I had to get creative.  There’s only so many ears of corn smothered in butter we’re willing to eat and while watermelon is amazing all on its own, there is no way we’ll be able to tackle the whole thing without fancying it up a bit.  These three salads are great accoutrements to chicken or fish.  The best part about the corn salad is that it can easily be altered to suit your style without compromising the taste. The cucumber salad is so versatile it can be eaten on it’s own, tossed on top of a sandwich or wrap or even mixed into a more traditional salad.  I recommend the watermelon salsa alongside fish or chicken or mixed into a dark leafy green salad. It’s sweet and salty flavors are unique but seemingly perfect together. At any rate, make them your own and enjoy the produce of the season.

Corn & Bean Salad

• slice the kernels from three cobs of corn that have been steamed
• about 1 cup of lima beans or edamame
• 1 can dark kidney beans
• 2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• about 1/2 small red onion
• chopped herbs such as chive and parsley
• juice from 2-3 limes
• course salt & pepper to taste

Toss together all ingredients and chill until ready to serve.

Watermelon Salsa

• about 1 1/2 cups watermelon cut in bite sized pieces
• 1/2 cup sliced kalamata olives
• 1/4 cup or so of chopped red onion

Mix ingredients together and chill.

Cucumber Salad

• 1 large cucumber, peeled, sliced down the middle and cut in very thin slices
• about 1/3-1/3 of a red onion, sliced thinly
• about 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
• just under a tablespoon of sugar

Toss together onion and cucumber and mix in the vinegar and sugar.  Best if allowed to marinate a few hours or even a few days.

Check out Holly’s blog: My Life Through Food