Nothing tastes better than a cool slice of watermelon on a hot summer day. Utah has been blessed with some of the sweetest watermelons around. Don’t miss your chance to enjoy the local watermelon at your home this summer!
The only challenge in using watermelon in salads and fruit bowl desserts is getting the seeds out. Years ago, Helen Bateman of Provo showed me the perfect solution to getting the seeds out of a melon. I hope you like it as much as I do.
How to De-Seed a Watermelon
Cut both ends off the watermelon and set it on its end inside a large dish to catch the juice. Place the point of a paring knife just into the area of the seeds and cut the melon from top to bottom, about 3 inches deep. Repeat all the way around the watermelon, creating wedges about 3- to 4-inches apart.
With the palm of your hand, hit the melon up and down along each wedge until the wedge is loose. The seed base is the weakest point of the watermelon, and with a little encouragement, the rind and the meat will naturally separate there.
Remove the wedge and scrape out the watermelon seeds. You are left with a delicious, seedless watermelon that is already in wedges that make it easy to cut into chunks and fill all those watering mouths!
Another fun idea with watermelons, or at least with the juice, is my Watermelon Slush. If you like watermelon, you’ll love this refreshing concoction!
Watermelon Slush Recipe
Ingredients:
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 (12-ounce) can frozen orange juice concentrate
- 1 (6-ounce) can frozen lemonade concentrate
- 3 ripe bananas, mashed
- 1 (1/4 ounce) package unsweetened strawberry Kool-Aid
- 1/2 gallon watermelon juice (from 1 large watermelon, de-seeded and strained)
(Note: to make watermelon juice, de-seed 1 large watermelon and push meat through a strainer or juice extractor.)
Mix the water and sugar in a saucepan and boil until sugar is dissolved. In a large bowl, mix orange juice, lemonade and pineapple concentrates and mashed bananas. Add sugar water to the concentrate mixture and stir until frozen concentrates are blended.
Pour the blend into freezer containers and remove them one hour before serving to soften. Add Kool-Aid and watermelon juice to slush. I think it is best served with a watermelon carved punch bowl, but anything will work nicely. This recipe makes 14 cups, so you can serve a large group with it!
