The timing when we got this new blog format up and running happened to coincide with the midst of the college-kids-shuffle (more about that soon, phew!), and I’m almost a little gun-shy to jump into posts over here after Josh has made it all so beautiful…I almost don’t want to mess it up!

But I do think it would be unfair to keep this salad I’ve been dying over to myself (ha! it is SO GOOD!). Watermelon and grilled chicken mixed with quinoa, arugula, basil and avocados…all of my favorite ingredients in one dish along with yummy balsamic dressing. I feel so fancy when I make it (isn’t it so pretty?), and it is so good that I’ve kind of made it on repeat the last couple weeks.

So here I am for a minute to link you to how to make this sucker. It is on my friend-who-I’ve-never-met Lillie’s blog. If you haven’t checked out “Lillie Loves Macros” recipes you are definitely missing out. Don’t let the “macros” in that title scare you off, I’m not doing macros anymore but her recipes are my favorite. She makes me feel like a chef with this food that is SO good. I’m learning I really can whip up my own salad dressings and mix the most tasty ingredients and fuel my family with so much goodness.

I’m going to go ahead and put the ingredients in this post for quick future reference, because I think this will be on repeat a lot. I just layer it all in there in whatever increments I want, but if you want specific measurements, click on Lillie’s link and it has all that info.

Here we go:

arugula
cubed watermelon
quinoa
sliced up avocado
chopped up cucumber
toasted pine nuts
fresh basil
loosely chopped red onion
feta cheese
grilled chicken

And this is how you make the dressing:

3 Tbs. white balsamic vinegar (I used regular because I don’t have white on hand and it was delicious)
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
5 grams of honey (just drizzle for a few seconds and it seems to work great!)
pinch of salt and pepper
2 Tbs. olive oil

Whisk it all up and drizzle on top of the salad, and inhale that deliciousness. It is SO good!

You can also add balsamic glaze if you want more balsamic goodness.

Here’s another pic from another night…pre-dressing…

And pre-devouring with one of my college girls:

Makes my mouth water.

Anyway, go buy those ingredients speedy-quick so you can whip this up for lunch…or your Labor Day weekend festivities, and you’ll thank me (and Lillie) when you taste that first bite!