Watermelon: A Summer Classic

               

Watermelon:  A Summer Classic

The crow problem in my melon patch seems to have finally dissipated.  As you may have guessed, my father and his gun turned out to be the most effective sort of scarecrow.  The losses weren’t as great as I had feared and we are finally able start harvesting watermelon and cantaloupe.  The first day we began harvesting melons we went through the patch and had a taste-test of several different varieties I had planted.  It is so fun to be able to stand out in the middle of the field, pull a huge juicy watermelon off the vine, and cut it open right there.  The middle of the melon, or “heart,” is the sweetest part of the melon, so we went straight for that part for our sampling. 

            Vegetable variety “taste-offs” seems to a theme on my farm this summer.  In addition to the melons, I have already mentioned trying the different tomato and eggplant varieties.  Testing the different kinds of hot peppers has now become a fun pastime for my friends.  I am not into hot things like a lot of folks are, so I take little baby bites of the peppers if I try them.  I do have to say that my heat tolerance seems to be building after all of this sampling.  The guys are not so cautious, however, often biting into a hot pepper with gusto, only to produce some amusing results.  I don’t know what they are expecting but they always seem surprised when their mouths end up on fire.  I am polite enough not to say “I told you so” even if it is exactly what I am thinking.

            It is easy for us to have fun little produce comparisons with so much to choose from on the farm.  The good news is that you can do some comparing on your own when you shop at Farmers’ Market.  I recommend that each week you pick a fruit or vegetable and try a couple of different varieties for yourself.  Usually, one is not better than the other.  Rather, each variety has its own subtle differences in flavor and/or texture, while retaining the overall qualities characteristic of that particular fruit or vegetable.

Here is another fun recipe sent to me from my cousin Jill in Cincinnati.  It is a cold watermelon soup.  I know when we have summer pot-lucks there is often more than one tray of watermelon and it doesn’t always all get eaten.  This would be a good way to use up the leftovers.

Watermelon Gazpacho

1 ice cold 3 lb. ripe watermelon
1 large cucumber, skinned, seeded (or 2 medium)
2 large celery stalks
1 small head romaine lettuce, trimmed, cut up (or sub a large diced yellow pepper)
2 medium, dense, heirloom tomatoes, seeded, chopped
1-2 teaspoons minced Garlic
Juice from 1-2 limes, according to taste
2 tablespoons white, balsamic, or rice vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro, basil, mint or parsley
Sea salt, to taste

Slice the watermelon, cut up most of it, taking out the seeds; reserve about 1 cup, diced fine. Toss the cut up watermelon into a food processor or blender. Add the cucumber, celery, lettuce, tomato, garlic. Pulse and blend the mix briefly to process it. Add the juice from one lime. Add the vinegar, chopped herbs, and sea salt. Pulse till combined.  Pour into a storage container, add in the reserved diced watermelon. Cover and chill until serving. Two hours is best. Total Servings: 6