Grandma Rose’s Watermelon Salad
Saturday Magic has a recipe in it that is included in the back of our picture book.
When my Mother-in-Love, Kenda Bell and I created Saturday Magic and we decided on Dayo being invited over for lunch, lunch details were important for the both of us.
The dining room of Dayo’s best friend, Anaya, was inspired by the dining room of my host parent’s house when I was an au pair in Paris.
While I couldn’t find a picture of the dining room from my time in France (summer of 2013-2014), that gorgeous design always stuck with me. I loved the room made of glass walls and ceiling allowing anyone in the space to visually experience the elements while eating. I bring up to my husband often how much I loved that dining room in the rain with the additional auditory aspect.
For those who are unaware I attended culinary school after my year as an au pair at Prue Leith Chef’s Academy in Centurion, South Africa. Being a qualified chef, one of my dreams is to write a cookbook one day (as well as run a cooking school). Food, especially in community means so much to me. I had the salad recipe that my Mother-in-Love and I created for the book. The flavors balance each other beautifully. It is definitely going to be a summer, Juneteenth and Kwanzaa staple in my household.
One of the aspects about the recipe that my Mother-in-Love and I designed is that it is an intuitive recipe. For the both of us, cooking is such an Ancestral act and we measure and create by listening to them as we are making.
The note we left in the book states:
You will notice there are no strict measurements in this recipe. We ask you to lean into the ingredients and amount intuitively.
While provide a list of the ingredients and directions but encourage you to move in the creation of the recipe through feeling. I am not a food photographer so please give me grace on the images of Grandma Rose’s Watermelon Salad. I made two plates. One for myself and one for the Ancestors, I placed on my altar with candles.
My Mother-in-Love and I envision so many more stories in the experiences and journey’s of Dayo. We see and hope the publisher eventually sees Saturday Magic as a series (the book’s financials play a role in this and pre-orders help). We have also envision an intuitive cookbook, a family heirloom of Dayo’s family.
Pre-order Saturday Magic coming out June 11, 2024. (Why Pre-Orders Matter)
Kenda and I would love to know if you make Grandma Rose’s Watermelon Salad and your thoughts on the recipe.