melon berry mint fruit salad

The secret ingredient in this salad is vinegar. It adds a subtle yet acidic punch that works quite well with the mint and cracked black pepper.

I usually go with a pretty even melon to berry ratio, but this salad was pretty much made for substitutions. If you don't have watermelon, honeydew melons are fantastic.

Any number of berries like raspberries and blackberries would work fine too. I also used fresh mint from our garden, but there are variety of mints to choose from and any would work fabulously.

This salad is the perfect side to a summer barbecue or get together such as the one we went to last night. Our friend Chris is the master of grill and made a feast of bacon wrapped chicken parts as well as three full racks of ribs ranging in spice levels from mild to hot. This cute little dog named Dixie sat at our feet as we stood eating, licking it's chops in anticipation of discarded bones or falling crumbs.

Chris also made an amazing pizza fondue! If anyone disappeared from the party, you could be sure to find them dipping tortilla chips into the melty goodness. Or in Patrick's case, taking a much-needed snooze on the hammock.

Our contribution of the melon berry mint salad added much-needed refreshment next to the richness of the various meats. Try it for your next summer get together and see if you agree!

This recipe is my first in the Gluten-free Recipe Challenge series. This month’s theme is mint! For more recipes featuring mint, check out the Caleigh's blog, Gluten-Free[k]!