Catch of the Day

After two days of pure relaxation in Turks & Caicos we were up for a little adventure. We signed up for a guided tour and set out for snorkeling and conch-diving with the sea breeze on our faces and Bob Marley strumming from the speakers. A flock of seagulls followed our boat, knowing we would lead them to the fish.

After spending most of the day in the water, we made our last stop at Iguana Island. We kicked back with a couple of local beers and watched how to extract conch from its shell. Pretty unappetizing, but with some tomatoes, peppers and Caribbean hot sauce the conch was surprisingly delicious.

Summertime Salad

We used the jalapeño and cucumbers from our garden to make this refreshing watermelon-cucumber salad. The recipe makes about 6 servings, but the two of us ate the whole bowl in one sitting.

Ingredients:

4 cups watermelon seeded and cut into generous 1/2 in cubes
2 large cucumbers, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2 in pieces

3 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce (I didn't have any on hand)
2 teaspoons seeded and finely diced jalapeño, or to taste
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
Cracked black pepper

1. Combine melon and cucumber in a colander set over a medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes and up to 4 hours.

2. Transfer melon and cucumber to serving bowl. Whisk lime juice, hoisin sauce, jalapeño and salt in a small bowl and pour over cucumber and melon. Add parsley and toss gently. Add black pepper to taste and additional salt if needed.