Now that it's nearing the end of August, I suppose it's time for a 2015 garden update. One of the things I've learned to love about gardening is how each year is so different. The first few years, I found this very frustrating: what grew well one year didn't grow well the next. However, I've learned to instead appreciate the things that do grow -- especially the surprises, which this year was full of. My mainstays did not do the best this year.  Lettuce grew okay, but not great. Radishes didn't produce much. For the first time, my carrots did not grow (I think the seeds got washed away!). The nice neat little rows that I had last year were not existent this year. The green beans grew pretty well, and some of the plants got huge!! The peas also grew well for the first time in a few years, so that was exciting. The tomatoes did not do as well as I'd hoped, but I've gotten some -- at least enough for salsa, bruschetta and a small batch of tomato sauce so far. Cucumbers were abysmal, as usual. What was most fun about this year were all of the surprises.

Before I get into tonight's delicious summer recipe, I need to do a plug for our CSA. Did I tell you we joined a CSA this year?  CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture -- and is basically an association between members of the community and a local farm where you buy into a share of the farm's crops that year. I've thought about doing it for years, and this was the year. We are CSA members at Chimney Creek Farm, and it has been amazing so far! We bought a "half share" which ends up being about two bags of produce every other week. Between that and my garden, we are eating our share of veggies this year! We bought into a "premium" share, which means we also get a few extras from other local farms -- including fruit, syrup, herbs and other fun goodies. Last week's share included cantaloupe and cucumber. I'm not a huge cantaloupe fan, but one of the benefits of a CSA is that it forces you to try new things and get creative in the kitchen. Knowing that I was unlikely to just eat pieces of cantaloupe, I went in search of some other fun ideas. I found some good inspiration on Pinterest and ended up creating my own recipe for a Cucumber Melon Summer Salad. It's a great side dish for a hot night, and what makes it even more fun is serving it inside half of a melon shell!

This was an easy and fun summer recipe that paired well with grilled chicken. It's probably my favorite way I've eaten cantaloupe. Tom said he never would have thought of combining these ingredients, but liked it -- adding that it's the feta cheese that really made the dish. Give it a try on the next hot summer night when you don't want to heat up the kitchen!