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Tropical Salad
1 cup cantaloup balls 6 slices tomato Garnish of red pepper Any desired dressing Lettuce leaves With a vegetable cutter, cut small balls from a cantaloup that is fairly firm in texture. Arrange several balls on a slice of tomato which has been placed on a nest of lettuce leaves. Garnish with pieces of red pepper or green pepper cut in diamond shapes. Serve with any desired dressing.
A composed salad from the era when a plate was arranged rather than tossed. Almost nothing needs translating except the tools and one ambiguous ingredient.
- CantaloupThe older spelling of cantaloupe. In an American book of this period it means the netted orange-fleshed muskmelon sold as cantaloupe today, not the true European cantaloupe.
- Vegetable cutterA parisienne scoop, sold now as a melon baller. A half-teaspoon measuring spoon gives a rougher ball if you have nothing else; a firm, slightly underripe melon holds its shape best, as the recipe says.
- Red pepperSweet red bell pepper or canned pimiento, cut in diamonds for garnish. It is not cayenne or hot pepper despite the bare name.
- YieldSix slices of tomato implies six salads, one slice each. A cup of melon balls spreads to three or four per plate, which matches the recipe's vague 'several balls'.
- Dressing"Any desired dressing" in a book of this period would most likely have suggested French dressing, boiled dressing, or mayonnaise thinned with cream. A sharp vinaigrette suits the melon better than anything creamy; dress at the table so the tomato does not weep.
- SeasoningNo salt is specified anywhere. Salt the tomato slices lightly a few minutes before assembling and blot them, which improves both flavor and the look of the plate.
- TemperatureChill the melon and tomato separately and assemble just before serving. Cut melon balls sitting in their own juice go slack within the hour.