Looking for the perfect way to cool down this summer? Of course you are. So am I. Which is what led me to this cool recipe (as if watermelon wasn’t cool enough). This sweet watermelon ice is pretty easy to make, which, if you know me by now, is a priority for me in the kitchen. Seriously, it’s harder to make coffee than it is to make this drink, so you have no excuse not to try it.

SWEET WATERMELON ICE

INGREDIENTS

• 3 cups fresh watermelon juice
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

DIRECTIONS:

Pour the watermelon juice into a shallow glass baking dish. Add the sugar and lemon juice and stir well. Place the dish in the freezer and chill.

Remove the pan every 1/2 hour and stir. The juice will form light, grainy ice crystals as it freezes. Repeat this process until the juice is fully frozen, about 4 hours, depending on the temperature of your freezer. You can also use an ice cream machine, following the manufacturer’s directions.

Serve immediately, or store in the freezer in a covered container up to several weeks.

Like last week’s entry about food safety, this question was also asked last year. I’m giving it another go ‘round but I’m  upping the ante. I’ll choose one correct comment from this entry to receive one of the watermelon key chain thingies I’m giving away as this month’s prize.

Studies have shown that watermelon, because of its smooth, thick skin, is one of the naturally cleanest produce items available and has the lowest number of detectable residues. Watermelon actually shares this squeaky clean distinction with one vegetable. Guess which one by leaving a comment.

I first posted this on What About Watermelon last spring, but food safety is a pretty important topic, so I thought I’d post it again this year. And probably next year, and the next, and the next.

Believe it or not, there’s never been a case of food-borne illness related to the watermelon itself. It’s true. In the very few instances in which people got sick after eating watermelon, it was because they either cut the watermelon with a contaminated knife or they didn’t handle the watermelon properly after cutting it.

Still, there are a few things you can do to keep your watermelon clean and safe, and a lot of this is common sense:

1. Choose a firm watermelon, free of major cracks, dents or bruises.

2. The FDA says to wash all fruits and veggies before cutting, so be sure to wash and dry the outer surface of your watermelon before cutting it.

3. Wash your hands and wash all cutting surfaces, knives and other utensils.

4. Refrigerate it after cutting it! Either by placing chunks in a bag or container or placing plastic wrap over the exposed part of the watermelon.

The bottom line is this: When in doubt, throw it out! It might be tough to bring yourself to toss out all that watermelon, but it’s probably better in the long run. Besides, wouldn’t you rather have some fresh, crisp watermelon anyhow?

Everyone knows watermelon is one of the tastiest fruits available, but did you know that the sweet fruit contains the alphabet of vitamins (including some vitamins I didn’t even know existed)?

I did some reading about this over the years and decided to compile a snapshot of the nutritional benefits here. For instance, did you know that just one cup of watermelon meets 20 percent of your daily requirement for vitamin C? Or that the same cup contains 18 percent of vitamin A, 2 percent iron and even 1 percent calcium. You’ll also find potassium, thiamin, niacin, vitamin B6, and folate. The list goes on and on, but what you won’t find is a lot of sodium or any saturated fat.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some cubed watermelon in the fridge with my name on it. (No seriously, I do. Where I work, if you don’t put your name on your food, it has a way of mysteriously “disappearing.”)

Yes, you read that right. Chicken IN a watermelon. And sure, it doesn’t look as appetizing as the watermelon steak I wrote about last month, but it’s watermelon and chicken: two of my favorite summertime foods. A whole roasted chicken cooked inside a sweet watermelon. Who can deny that?

The whole chicken is stuffed inside a hollowed-out watermelon (save those pieces for dessert – if you can last five whole hours without eating it!) and mixed with a five-spice powder. There isn’t much watermelon taste, but you do get a hint of sweetness. The best part is how juicy and tender the watermelon makes the chicken. I could pull it apart with my fingers. Now that’s finger-licking good!

The recipe is courtesy of the Buckaroo Banzai DVD, and the photo, although it might look a little strange to see a chicken IN a watermelon, is from John on Wine.

CHICKEN IN A WATERMELON

INGREDIENTS

1 very large watermelon
1 roaster chicken, about 5 to 6 pounds
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 lemon
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon five-spice powder
2 tablespoons chilled butter

DIRECTIONS

1. Cut a 1/4-inch-thick horizontal slice off bottom of watermelon, so it won’t roll. Discard. Cut off the top third of the melon horizontally, then scoop out seeds and enough of the pulp from both remain parts to make room for the chicken.
2. Season cavity of chicken with salt and pepper. Insert lemon pricked with fork, along with 1 tablespoon of the soy sauce. Brush outside of chicken with remaining soy sauce, and sprinkle with five-spice powder,
3. Place chicken in the larger part of the melon and position the other piece of melon on top, securing with long skewers.
4. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and bake 2 hours. Then reduce heat to 300 degrees and bake 2 1/2 hours longer.
5. Place watermelon on a tray and show it to guests. Return it to kitchen: remove chicken and carve. With a ladle, remove juices from watermelon and reduce in skillet until thickened; whisk in cold butter and spoon over chicken before serving.

I’m always losing my keys, and I’m not just talking about misplacing my keys. I have literally LOST my keys on more than one occasion. It’s a lot like losing your wallet, only instead of freaking out that someone is maxing out your credit card while you scramble to cancel it, you freak out because you can’t drive your car or get into your house.

Which brings me to this month’s prize. Watermelon is the key to my heart, and now watermelon can hold the keys to your home for just one comment. That’s right. This beautiful sterling silver charm can be yours for just a few words. TWO lucky winners chosen at random will have the most charming keys on the block.

Every now and then I like to post a kid-friendly recipe here on What About Watermelon under the guise that I’m doing it for all the parents out there who are looking for a fun recipe to make with their kids. Of course, that’s one reason I post recipes like this, but the other reason is that I like to make them too. Watermelon, jelly and cookies… you don’t need to be eight years old to love that!

WATERMELON JELLY LOGS

INGREDIENTS
6 3-inch x 2-inch x 5-inch watermelon rectangles
3 flavors, all-fruit or low-sugar preserves
6 ginger, molasses or  peanut butter cookies

DIRECTIONS
Using a melon baller, cut 3 divots into a long side of each watermelon rectangle. Fill each divot with a different all-fruit or low-sugar preserve. Serve each rectangle with a cookie.

For more recipes like this, check out the National Watermelon Promotion Board website!

Last year I posted a roundup of upcoming watermelon festivals, and it seemed to come in handy for a lot of readers, so I’m doing it again this year. Below is a listing of some of the larger festivals, but if I’m missing any (and I’m sure I am), leave a comment and I’ll add it ASAP.

This is only a very short list of all the watermelon festivals out there. For a much longer list, visit the National Watermelon Promotion Board website. I should also point out that the highlights listed below for each festival are only the watermelon-related highlights. Most of these festivals have other things going on, like live music, craft fairs and other fun and games for the whole family.

HAMPTON COUNTY WATERMELON FESTIVAL (June 19-27)

LOCATION: Hampton, South Carolina
HIGHLIGHTS: Melon Miss & Master Pageant, watermelon eating contest, watermelon growing contest, parade

LULING WATERMELON THUMP (June 24-27)

LOCATION: Luling, Texas
HIGHLIGHTS: Watermelon contest, coronation of watermelon queen, watermelon eating contest, champion watermelon auction, world championship watermelon seed spitting contest

PANHANDLE WATERMELON FESTIVAL (June 25-26)

LOCATION: Shipley, Florida
HIGHLIGHTS: Watermelon beauty pageant (not sure whether  this one  is for people or watermelons), big watermelon contest and auction, watermelon seed spitting contest

BEAUREGARD WATERMELON FESTIVAL (June 25-27)

LOCATION: DeRidder, Louisiana

HIGHLIGHTS: “Cutting of the Melon” kick-off event, celebrity seed spitting contest

PAGELAND WATERMELON FESTIVAL (July 16-17)

LOCATION: Pageland, South Carolina
HIGHLIGHTS: Watermelon seed spitting contest, watermelon eating contest (right)

MISSISSIPPI WATERMELON FESTIVAL (July 23-24)

LOCATION: Mize, Mississippi
HIGHLIGHTS: Watermelon seed spitting contest, watermelon eating contest, greased watermelon race (I’m praying that someone captures this event on video)

LOUISIANA WATERMELON FESTIVAL (July 29-31)

LOCATION: Farmerville, Louisiana
HIGHLIGHTS: watermelon seed spitting contest, largest watermelon contest, watermelon decorating, watermelon hunt, watermelon auction, watermelon quality and tasting competition, arm wrestling contest (I know the last event isn’t watermelon-related, but an arm wrestling contest is pretty cool, so I gave it a mention)

HOPE WATERMELON FESTIVAL (August 12-14)

LOCATION: Hope, Arkansas
HIGHLIGHTS: Watermelon Olympics (with a watermelon toss, among other events), a seed spitting contest, “Watermelon Idol” talent show, watermelon eating contest.

CECELIA WRITES: I am a diabetic and I love watermelon. Is there a high sugar content in it, and if so what amount can I eat?

Very good question, Cecelia. I should preface my answer by saying that diabetics should always consult their endocrinologist and/or dietitian/diabetes educator with any specific questions about what they can and cannot eat.

That said, the good news is that diabetics do not need to give up carbohydrates, including sugar. Even more important is that naturally occurring sugars in fruits like watermelon come packaged with so many other health-enhancing compounds (fiber, lycopene, and vitamins A and C), which make watermelon a healthy inclusion in all diets.

The key for you is balancing carbohydrates during meals and snack time. That balance should be decided with the help of your personal dietitian. Making sure the carbohydrates you do eat come from healthful, real foods – like watermelon! – is the key to total health and weight management.

Thanks for your question, and I hope this helps!

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Somer, Registered Dietician*

*Please contact your local dietician for personalized advice regarding any particular health concern you may have.

If things go horribly wrong in your attempts to make last week’s watermelon steak, you can clean up the mess with this month’s featured product and prize, the watermelon kitchen scrubber. It’s made from natural loofah, which is harvested by from ancient loofah trees found only in the northern mountainous region of China. Amazon.com claims that this little wonder “will make your kids actually want to help you do the dishes!” I doubt that’s true, but for $4.99 it’s worth a shot, right?

I’ll send two of these miracle workers to one commenter chosen at random from all the comments left on What About Watermelon this month. Good luck!