Watermelon is a berry with a hard, smooth rind and juicy red flesh. Watermelon is native to South and Central Africa. Watermelon has been known since ancient Egypt. In ancient Rome, it was grown at the beginning of our era, and in Western Europe it appeared thanks to the crusader knights, in the XI-XII centuries.
Tatars brought watermelons to Russia. The Russian name "watermelon" comes from the Iranian word "harbyuz", which means "melon" or "big cucumber".

Watermelons are rich in vitamins C, B1, B2, B6, PP, D, provitamin A, folic acid. The pulp of watermelon contains up to 12% sugar - glucose, fructose, sucrose (and half of all sugars are fructose). It also contains fiber, pectin, a lot of salts of potassium, calcium, iron, copper, phosphorus, manganese, zinc, nickel. Watermelons are useful for people of any age, including children, for whom they are an excellent dessert food. Medicinal properties watermelon are widely known medicine. But the main one is the strongest diuretic effect. Watermelon is useful for cystitis, nephritis, urolithiasis, with edema associated with cardiovascular diseases, kidney and liver diseases.

Watermelons must have an intact surface. When tapped, a muffled sound should be heard.

Watermelon is eaten fresh and added to fruit salads. Watermelons can be salted, and watermelon "honey" can be made from watermelon juice by evaporation, which contains up to 89% sugar. From watermelon rinds you can make delicious candied fruits, cook jams and jams.

pickled watermelon
It is best to pickle and salt watermelons at a time when they are not yet ripe, namely from the end of July to mid-August. Later, the preparations made are no longer so successful: overripe watermelons do not have such delicate taste and juiciness, like unripe.
Pickling is done in this way: cut off a thin green peel from an unripe watermelon, remove the seeds and cut into large pieces. Then put them in a bowl and sprinkle with sugar mixed with ground ginger.
For a 2 kg watermelon, take 11/2 cups of sugar and 11/2 teaspoons of ginger. Sprinkle pieces of watermelon with this mixture, pour table vinegar and leave overnight. In the morning, pour the vinegar into a saucepan and put 50 g of cloves in it, bring to a boil and dip the pieces of watermelon into the boiling vinegar. Cook until soft, being careful, however, that the pieces are only soft, but do not fall apart. To do this, watermelon should be boiled no more than two times.
Put the finished watermelon carefully on a dish and let cool. Then also carefully transfer to glass jars and pour the cooled and strained broth, without adding 7 cm to the edges of the jar. Fill the jars to the top with olive oil, close the lids and store in a cold, dry place.

Candied watermelon rinds
200 g watermelon rinds
2 cups sugar
0.5 cups of water
zest and juice of 1 lemon
Candied fruits can be made from watermelon peels. Cut off the green peel, cut the remaining white part of the peel into strips. Immerse the watermelon peels in cold water and boil until soft, without overcooking. From 1 cup of sugar, prepare a syrup with 0.5 cups of water, add the juice and zest of 1 lemon, bring to a boil, add watermelon peels and cook over low heat, sprinkling with the remaining sugar. Put candied watermelon on a baking sheet, let dry at room temperature and transfer to jars for storage.

The sweet treats that can be made from the juicy mass of the ripe fruit can actually be quite varied. For example, marmalade and watermelon jam are especially popular, the recipe for making these sweets should be at hand for every housewife, because how can you manage a cup of tea in winter without delicious homemade jam. Classic options many could already get fed up, but minke whale jam is something special, unusual and interesting, in a word, something that not everyone manages to try.

Watermelon jam: recipe with apples

cook watermelon jam very easy at home. To somehow embellish the taste winter harvest- We will add ripe apples to it. Watermelon combined with apples will give great taste, which can always be adjusted with sour lemon and sweet sugar. Cooking will take no more than 1 hour, but this time is enough to have time to prepare a lot of sweet watermelon jam for the winter.

Ingredients

  • Apples - 1 kg;
  • Watermelon pulp - 1 kg;
  • Lemon - 1 pc.;
  • Sugar - 1 kg.

Watermelon jam recipe

  1. We cut the watermelon pulp into cubes, peel the apples from seeds and peel, then cut them in the same way as a watermelon (in cubes).
  2. Cook the chopped food in a saucepan for 30 minutes.
  3. Add sugar, boil for another 5 minutes.
  4. Pour the cooked mass into a blender, grind it into a puree.
  5. Add lemon juice with grated zest to the puree mass, put the product on fire again, cook it until it thickens.

This completes the preparation. We lay out the jam in pre-prepared (sterilized) jars, roll them up with lids, give them a little time to cool (after wrapping the jars in a blanket), then take them to storage in a cool dark place.

Jam is a kind of jam. If you are a fan of this particular product, then be sure to write down a simple and at the same time interesting recipe its preparation. All the ingredients for homemade watermelon jam are available and simple, orange zest can add a noticeable piquancy to it, if desired, it can be added in a small amount at the very end of cooking.

Ingredients

  • Water - 20 ml;
  • Watermelon pulp - 500 g;
  • Orange peel - 1 tbsp. l.;
  • Sugar - 500 g;
  • Lemon - ½ pc.

How to make jam from watermelon pulp

  1. We clean the watermelon pulp from the peel and seeds, cut it into cubes.
  2. We shift the cut from the watermelon into a saucepan, fill it with water. Bring the product to a boil, without ceasing to stir it.
  3. Boil watermelon for 5 minutes, remove from heat, cool.
  4. Squeeze the juice from the lemon, add it to the pan with watermelon pulp, add sugar last.
  5. We remove the product for 2 hours to infuse.
  6. After a couple of hours, put the jam back on the fire, bring it to a boil, then boil for another 5-7 minutes.
  7. Immediately, while hot, we lay out the jam in sterilized jars (fill the jars to the top), roll them up with sterilized lids, and put them upside down for a while. We wrap the jars, waiting for the contents to cool completely, then take them to a cool place (basement, refrigerator, pantry) for storage.

This watermelon jam is ready. The orange peel recipe is not significantly different. If you want to add orange zest to jam, then you can do this after the first boil. We put the crushed peels in the bulk, boil everything for 20 minutes, then lay it out in sterilized jars, roll it up, put it away for storage.

How to make watermelon marmalade

Not only marmalade or jam can be made from sweet watermelon, delicious marmalade is also very popular. home cooking. It will take a lot of time to make it at home, but the taste of the finished sweetness will turn out to be extraordinary, and most importantly, there will be no flavorings and harmful additives in such a product. Therefore, not only joy will come out of home cooking, but also benefit.

Ingredients

  • Sugar - 1.2 kg;
  • Watermelon peels - 1 kg;
  • Sugar (for sprinkling) - to taste;
  • Lemon juice - ½ pc.;
  • Soda - 1 tsp;
  • Cardamom - to taste.

Step by step watermelon marmalade recipe

  1. We clean the crusts from the hard green part, cut them into medium or small pieces.
  2. Fill the cut with soda solution (we prepare a solution according to the principle of 1 tsp of soda per 1 liter of water), leave the watermelon in it for 4-6 hours.
  3. Afterwards, rinse thoroughly in cold water.
  4. Next, transfer them to a large container, fill with water so that they are completely covered with it. Add sugar (600 g), put the container with watermelon on the stove, boil the product for 20 minutes.
  5. We leave the crusts after cooking alone for 6-8 hours.
  6. After the specified time, bring them to a boil again, boil for 15-20 minutes, leave to insist again for 6-8 hours.
  7. After the second downtime, boil the watermelon peels for the third time.
  8. Add at the end of cooking lemon juice, cardamom, the rest of the sugar.
  9. When the sugar is completely dissolved, boil the marmalade for 3-5 minutes, then decant the syrup and roll the crusts in sugar.

It turns out very tasty summer dessert, which can be eaten not only as an independent product, but also as a filling in home baking, ice cream and other sweets produced at home.

Homemade watermelon pulp sorbet

In the heat, we all love to eat sweet ice cream, which perfectly satisfies hunger and thirst. Legends have long been made up about the dangers of a factory dessert, so alternative many housewives think the option of making ice cream at home.

One of the varieties of delicious ice cream is sorbet - this is frozen juice or pulp of fruits / berries, combined with sugar syrup. The difference between this product and regular ice cream is that it does not contain dairy ingredients. It is this dessert that we will try to prepare from a sweet watermelon.

Ingredients

  • Watermelon pulp - 700 g;
  • Honey (liquid) - 1 tbsp. l.;
  • Water - 220 g;
  • Sugar - 100 ml.

How to make watermelon sorbet

  1. We clean the fruit from the peel, seeds, cut it into medium cubes.
  2. Using a blender, turn the watermelon slices into puree.
  3. The foam that has formed must be removed.
  4. We pass the pulp through a colander with small holes.
  5. In a separate (enamelled) pan, mix water and sugar, put the container on the stove, heat the product until the sugar dissolves.
  6. The resulting syrup is poured into watermelon pulp, add honey there, mix everything with a whisk until a homogeneous mass.
  7. We shift the resulting mass into a low form, place it in freezer for 6 hours, and even better all night.
  8. During the freezing process, the sorbet must be stirred 2-4 times so that large ice crystals do not begin to form in it, and it is more pliable when laid out in portions.

It is not worth storing watermelon sorbet for a long time; over time, it loses its taste. Therefore, prepare as much ice cream as you can eat in the next few days.

Now you know what can be made from the pulp of a watermelon. As you can see, the list of dishes from this fruit is very diverse. That's why at the height of the watermelon season you can afford to cook anything: sorbet, marmalade, marmalade, jam or jam. You can eat all these products at once, or you can prepare them for the winter, during the cold season such sweetness will be appreciated even more.

Enjoy your meal!

How have you eaten watermelon in your life? Most, for sure, - only in raw form or in a cocktail. But with a little magic, you can do amazing things with watermelon: ice cream, necks, fried and even salty dishes.

(Total 10 photos)

1. Appetizer salad with fried watermelon, mint and feta cheese

Fried watermelon sounds intimidating, but it's actually juicy and crunchy on the inside, smoky and sweet on the outside. Throw to him salted cheese Feta, spice up with lime and a dash of mint freshness. And here you have a wonderful salad for a picnic!

For the appetizer salad you will need:

  • 8 pitted watermelon slices (about the size of a deck of cards)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil;
  • 5 teaspoons of lime juice;
  • 5 slices of Feta cheese (a little over 100 grams);
  • a handful of fresh mint leaves;
  • 3 cups greens (arugula, lettuce, watercress)
  • salt, pepper - to taste;
  • fried pumpkin seeds.

Fire up the grill. Pat the watermelon pieces dry with paper towels and place them on the grill. Fry on one side, without turning, for 2 minutes.
Toss the greens with 2 tablespoons lime juice, olive oil and a pinch of salt. Arrange the greens on a large platter, top with grilled watermelon slices, toasted side up. Add Feta and some watermelon pieces. Pour the remaining lime juice over them and sprinkle lightly with salt (pepper to taste). It remains only to decorate everything with mint and pumpkin seeds.

2. Appetizing watermelon slices with mint and lime

For delicious slices you will need:

  • 1 chilled pitted watermelon;
  • 1/2 bunch fresh mint;
  • 4 limes (from 2 - zest, from 2 - juice);
  • 3/4 cup sugar.

Cut the watermelon into 4 pieces, and then into slices about 5 cm thick (see as in the picture). Chop the mint leaves and mix in a bowl with 2 tablespoons of lime zest. Add sugar and mix well. Place the watermelon slices on a large flat dish and pour the lime juice over them. Then sprinkle the pieces with the made mint-lime sugar.

3. Watermelon mint sherbet

A classic watermelon in a new twist: frozen pulp + mint + lime = juicy and refreshing ice cream (or in other words, sherbet). Sorbet contains virtually no sugar and can be topped with a few tablespoons of rum for even more enjoyment.

For sherbet you will need:

  • watermelon (about 2 kg, de-seeded and broken into pieces);
  • 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sugar;
  • 3 limes (juice from them);
  • 3 tablespoons of white rum;
  • a pinch of salt;
  • 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon chopped mint leaves.

Pieces of watermelon, sugar, lime juice and rum - everything is loaded into a blender. And bring to the state of puree. Add mint and mix everything until it turns into small particles and is not visible. After the mixture is packed in an airtight container and frozen for several hours.

The presence of an ice cream maker greatly facilitates the process. If it is not there, then every hour we take the mixture out of the freezer and mix it thoroughly with a spoon or mixer, as long as possible. This is to prevent ice crystals from forming in the ice cream. For complete freezing, sherbet is kept in the freezer for 6-8 hours.

4. Watermelon-tomato salad with Feta

You will be surprised how well watermelon and feta cheese go together. With each bite, salty, sweet and at the same time invigorating notes begin to play brighter. This salad is simple, but not without a dose of ingenuity, as you can add other ingredients to it. summer vegetables(except tomato). The dish is best served with fried fish or steak.

For the salad you will need:

  • 4 tablespoons of red wine vinegar;
  • 1 teaspoon of salt;
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper;
  • 1/2 cup olive oil;
  • 1 small cucumber, peeled;
  • 1/2 small red onion;
  • 3 tomatoes, cut into pieces;
  • 3 1/2 cups pitted watermelon, cut into small pieces
  • 1 red bell pepper, cut into pieces;
  • 200 grams of feta cheese, cut into 1-1.5 cm cubes;
  • 1 cup finely chopped fresh mint leaves.

We start by preparing the dressing. To do this, mix vinegar, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Then add olive oil and beat well. Set aside for a while.

Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise, remove the seeds with a spoon if necessary. Then cut it into thin slices in the form of a crescent. Cut the onion into thin half rings. Finally, put the cucumber, onion, tomatoes, watermelon chunks, peppers, cheese and mint into a large bowl. Adding a consignment. It is desirable to serve immediately.

5. Milk and watermelon shake

Try this incredible shake that mixes juicy watermelon with ice and milk. It's incredible! Foamy, sweet, the most delicate pinkish color ... Milk-watermelon shake is not cloying and not heavy. The consistency is more like juice with the addition of something similar to cream.

Watermelon must be frozen first. To do this, cut it into pieces, put them on a sheet of parchment paper in one layer and place in the freezer. This will keep the watermelon pieces from sticking together, and you can take as many of them as you need. Once frozen, you can transfer them to airtight bags and store up to 3 months.

For the neck you will need:

  • 3 cups frozen watermelon chunks
  • 1 glass of milk;
  • 2 tablespoons of sugar.

Mix all ingredients in a blender and bring to a consistency milkshake. Sugar can be added to taste. Actually, it's ready!

6. Refreshing watermelon water

In the summer, out of habit, do you quench your thirst with soda? We strongly urge you to stop this business and use only natural home-made drinks. Since watermelon is our key figure today, we offer you a wonderful recipe for cold watermelon water. It has virtually no sugar, and it refreshes superbly.

For watermelon water you will need:

  • half a large watermelon (without rind, cut into large pieces);
  • 4 glasses of water;
  • 8 fresh mint leaves (optional)
  • juice of half a lime (about 1-1.5 tablespoons);
  • 3 tablespoons of sugar or honey.

Place half of the watermelon pulp and half of the water in a blender and turn into a smooth puree. Then we taste the resulting mass - is it sweet enough. If we feel that it is not very sweet, remember to add sugar to the next batch. Strain the liquid through a sieve into a pitcher or large bowl. Repeat the procedure with the remaining pieces of watermelon and water, add mint leaves and sugar. We mix everything until a homogeneous mass. We pass through again. Add lime juice. Refrigerate before serving.

7. Watermelon Popsicle

Eskimo is, in a way, a synonym for childhood. And here in front of us lies a large or not very large, but undoubtedly very desirable, watermelon - can it really be turned into everyone's favorite dessert? This is exactly what we suggest you do!

For watermelon popsicle you will need:

  • about 700 grams of watermelon pulp, without peel and seeds;
  • 2 tablespoons of sugar;
  • 4 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves;
  • 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest;
  • a pinch of salt.

Grind watermelon pulp with sugar in a blender. A little later, add mint, lemon zest, salt.

The resulting mixture is poured into popsicle forms that are available on the farm. Then we send the future watermelon ice cream to the refrigerator. After an hour and a half, sticks can be inserted into the molds. We leave the watermelon popsicle in the freezer for at least 3 hours so that it freezes well.

8. Watermelon jelly

Watermelon is delicious on its own. But why not treat yourself to a wonderful dessert? Watermelon jelly is not a standard dish. It has delicious taste, delicate color and texture. This dessert will definitely appeal to both adults and children.

For jelly you will need:

  • watermelon (about 3 kg with peel);
  • gelatin (bag, about 20 grams);
  • 1/2 cup sugar;
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice;
  • vegetable oil.

Slicing the watermelon big chunks, peeled. Put the pulp in a blender and turn into a puree. Strain the pureed watermelon through a sieve. You should end up with about 3 cups of juice.

In a small bowl, mix gelatin with 1 cup of watermelon juice. Let it brew for 3 minutes.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, heat the rest of the watermelon juice, adding sugar to it. Keep on fire until the sugar is completely dissolved. Then add pre-prepared gelatin to this mixture and lemon juice. We take it off the fire.

Pour the prepared mixture into molds, previously smeared with oil. Cover and put in the refrigerator overnight. Before serving, cut the jelly into cubes and distribute among bowls.

9. Watermelon-orange smoothie

This cocktail is delicious and very refreshing. Watermelon, however, like Orange juice, is an excellent source of antioxidants and vitamin C. What do peppers do in its composition, you ask? It very subtly emphasizes the taste of watermelon. You should not be afraid to add it to your smoothie.

For smoothies you will need:

  • 2.5 cups chopped pitted watermelon
  • 1 cup of ice;
  • 1/2 cup orange juice;
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper.

Cut the watermelon into pieces, if possible, remove the seeds. We load watermelon slices, orange juice, pepper and ice into a blender. We mix everything. You can add some honey to make the drink sweeter. It's so quick and easy, and the smoothie is ready. Enjoy!

10. Super refreshing strawberry-watermelon drink

Excellent refreshing non-alcoholic drink with a wonderful aroma and rich color. The main thing in it is to comply correct proportion strawberries: if there is too much of it, then it will already turn out to be sweets, if it is too little, then the drink will not have enough sweetness. So try and experiment!

For a drink you will need:

  • 4 cups diced watermelon;
  • 1 cup peeled strawberries;
  • juice of half a lime;
  • 6 mint leaves (+ for garnish)

If there is a juicer, then in accordance with the instructions we get juice from watermelon, strawberries, limes. The pulp is not used.

If we use a blender, then mix the watermelon, strawberries, lime until smooth. Strain through a sieve, using a spatula.

We take glasses and put 3 mint leaves in each of them. Put ice on top. A mixture of juices (watermelon, strawberry and lime) is poured into glasses and served.

As you can see, everything is simple and accessible. Recipes with watermelon as the main ingredient are so good you want to make them right now!

And what original recipes you know about watermelon?

Ingredients

  • ¼ of a medium watermelon;
  • 2 bunches of fresh cilantro;
  • 2 bunches of arugula;
  • 2 bunches of fresh mint;
  • 1 small radish;
  • 100 g feta cheese;
  • some peanuts or shelled sunflower seeds.

For sauce

  • 1 small ginger root, peeled and chopped
  • 1 red, 1 yellow (guero) and 1 green chili (de-seeded and finely chopped)
  • 1 st. l. soy sauce;
  • 6 art. l. olive oil;
  • 1 tsp sesame oil;
  • juice of 3-4 limes;

Cooking

Peel the pulp of the watermelon and cut into cubes. Chop cilantro, arugula and mint and place in a bowl along with chopped radish, watermelon and mint. In another bowl, combine the ginger, chili peppers, soy sauce, olive and sesame oil, lime juice, ground pepper and salt (to taste). Fry peanuts or sunflower seeds in a pan or baking sheet in the oven (you can buy already fried ones). After that, crush the seeds or grind them with a blender or coffee grinder. Pour dressing over salad, top with feta cheese and sprinkle with peanuts (sunflower seeds).

Fried watermelon with cheese and prosciutto


Ingredients

  • 3-5 small (about 3 cm thick) pieces of watermelon;
  • 1 st. l. olive oil;
  • 100 g prosciutto;
  • 100 g blue cheese;
  • 1 tsp balsamic vinegar;
  • a bunch of fresh basil;
  • coarse salt;
  • ground black pepper.

Cooking

Preheat the barbecue to 350-400 degrees. Brush watermelon slices with olive oil (on both sides), salt and pepper. Grill the watermelon slices (1 minute per side) with the lid off the BBQ until a characteristic crust appears. Cut the prosciutto into thin slices. Drizzle each slice of watermelon with balsamic vinegar and serve alongside prosciutto, cheese and fresh basil.

watermelon shake


Ingredients

  • 500 g pulp ripe watermelon;
  • 100 g of condensed milk;
  • 2 tbsp. l. Sahara;
  • cocktail umbrellas for decoration, tubules.

Cooking

A shake is a cocktail, most often a milkshake, based on the mixing and shaking of the components. To prepare it, remove the stones from the watermelon. Beat it in a blender with condensed milk and sugar until smooth. Pour the cocktail into a decanter and chill in the refrigerator. Then pour into glasses (from the indicated amount of ingredients you get 4-6 servings) and decorate to your taste.

watermelon soup


Ingredients

  • 500 g of watermelon pulp;
  • 1 fresh cucumber;
  • 1 green chili pepper;
  • 1 green onion feather;
  • 1 lime;
  • a bunch of mint;
  • 2 tbsp. l. champagne vinegar;
  • 1 st. l. olive oil;
  • sea ​​salt and ground black pepper.

Cooking

Remove pits from watermelon and chop finely. Finely chop the pepper too. green onion and mint. Cut the cucumber into small cubes. Take a deep bowl and mix all the chopped ingredients, sprinkling them with lime juice (by the way, you can also crumble the zest into a bowl), vinegar and olive oil. Mix well. Then grind the contents of the bowl with a blender until smooth. Strain through a fine sieve, season the resulting puree with salt and ground pepper. Cool in the refrigerator for an hour. Then serve on the table, pouring into deep plates and garnish with mint.

watermelon salsa


Ingredients

  • 400 g of watermelon pulp;
  • 2 jalapeno peppers;
  • a bunch of cilantro;
  • 60 ml lime juice;
  • half a small purple onion;
  • salt to taste.

Cooking

Salsa is Mexican vegetable snack from finely chopped vegetables (not to be confused with the sauce of the same name!). To make an extravagant watermelon salsa, wash, deseed and cut all the necessary vegetables and fruits. Pour lime juice, salt. Mix well and let the snack brew a little. Serve chilled.

Watermelon and shrimp skewers


Ingredients

  • 450 g large shrimp;
  • 26 pieces (3 cm thick) ripe watermelon;
  • 80 ml lime juice;
  • 60 ml of olive oil;
  • 2 tbsp. l. honey;
  • a pinch of garlic powder;
  • basil (preferably Thai).

Cooking

First, prepare the marinade: mix lime juice, oil, chopped basil, honey and garlic powder. Pour a quarter of the resulting marinade into a separate bowl. Then soak the peeled shrimp in the marinade for 15 minutes. Thread the shrimp and watermelon pieces onto wooden skewers, alternating between them. Grill the skewers over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the shrimp turn pink. Serve the kebab directly on the skewers, pouring it with the remaining marinade. From the indicated amount of products, about 13 servings will be obtained.

Watermelon rind jam


Ingredients

  • 1 kg of watermelon peels;
  • 1.2 kg of sugar;
  • 600 ml of water;
  • 1 lemon;
  • 3 tsp baking soda;
  • vanilla.

Cooking

Cut the green skin off the watermelon rinds (only the white part should remain) and cut them into small pieces (3–4 cm). Dissolve soda in 3 liters of water and place the peels in the resulting solution. Leave them to soak overnight. Rinse thoroughly with clean water in the morning. Next, boil the sugar syrup: 600 ml of water per 600 g of sugar. When the syrup begins to thicken, lower the crusts into it, bring to a boil and cook for another 30 minutes over low heat. After that, turn off and leave to infuse (5-8 hours). Then add the remaining sugar, bring to a boil again and cook for half an hour. Leave for another 5-8 hours. Repeat the procedure a third time. At the end of the third boil, add lemon juice and vanilla. When the jam has cooled, pour it into jars and store in a cool place.

watermelon popsicles


Ingredients

  • 500 g of watermelon;
  • 2 tbsp. l. lime juice;
  • mint.

Cooking

Peel the pulp of the watermelon. Using a blender, combine watermelon, lime juice and mint leaves. You can add some sugar to taste. Then pour the resulting cocktail into molds (it is convenient to use yogurt cups), stick in the sticks, as for a popsicle, and send it to the refrigerator for several hours. To easily remove the watermelon ice from the molds, dip the mold with it in warm water for a few seconds.

watermelon pudding


Ingredients

  • 2 kg of watermelon pulp;
  • 50 g cornstarch;
  • 100 g of sugar;
  • 1 tsp anise seeds;
  • 2 tsp lemon juice.

Cooking

Peel the watermelon and puree with a blender. Strain through a sieve to get rid of the pulp. Mix ¼ of the resulting watermelon juice with cornstarch. Pour the remaining juice into a saucepan and bring to a boil along with sugar and anise seeds. Then pour the reserved watermelon juice with starch into the pan. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes. Then add lemon juice and remove the pan from heat. Pour the watermelon mass through a sieve into cups and let cool until room temperature. After that, send the pudding to the refrigerator for at least 3 hours. Serve topped with chopped pistachios, chocolate chips, cinnamon, or topped with whipped cream.

watermelon sorbet


Ingredients

  • 4 kg of watermelon;
  • 130 g of sugar;
  • 180 ml of water;
  • 2 tbsp. l. lime juice.

Cooking

Pour water into a small saucepan, add sugar to it and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Then reduce the heat and cook the syrup for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Then cover the pot with a lid and refrigerate for an hour. Meanwhile, blend the watermelon and lime juice with a blender until smooth. Then strain the watermelon mass through a sieve to get rid of the seeds, and beat it with the cooled sugar syrup. Pour the watermelon-sugar mixture into a shallow frying pan and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. During this time, the future sorbet should “grab” around the edges. Take a spoon and stir it. Put it back in the refrigerator. Repeat the procedure after half an hour. Sorbet should have a consistency of watermelon-ice crystals. After that, freeze the dessert for another 1.5–2 hours.

Cooking interesting watermelon dishes is not as difficult as it seems. You just need to really want it, and strain your imagination. Many people think that berries are only suitable for jam, but this is a very big mistake.

Fancy drink

Everyone is used to the fact that watermelon should be eaten without pre-treatment, simply cutting it into slices and savoring the juicy, tender pulp. But few people know that a huge number of the most unexpected dishes can be prepared from this unusual berry. Some recipes do not even fit in my head. For example, the simplest version of a watermelon dish is a drink. It is not difficult to prepare it. For 4 servings you will need:

120 grams of watermelon pulp, ½ lime stuff, a tablespoon of sugar, 60 milliliters of white rum, 4 mint leaves and some ice.

Preparation is carried out in several stages:

  1. Cut the lime into slices and crush in a specially prepared container along with sugar and mint.
  2. Add watermelon and stir again.
  3. Pour in the rum and toss in the ice cubes.
  4. Mix the contents well and pour into glasses.

No one will refuse such an exquisite drink, which is reminiscent of Mojito in composition. But if the guests suddenly come across non-drinkers, then rum can be easily replaced with Sprite.

"Magic" salad

There is another option for cooking watermelon dishes. This is a salad. Enough unusual combination components in the end gives surprisingly pleasant taste. To prepare such a salad, you will need:

1.5 kilograms of watermelon pulp, 100 grams of pumpkin seeds, 300 grams of Feta cheese, 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil and a little ground black pepper.

An unusual culinary "miracle" is being prepared as follows:

  1. First, preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
  2. Send the seeds into it for 10 minutes, after mixing them with two tablespoons of oil.
  3. Cut the watermelon randomly into medium-sized pieces and put them on plates.
  4. Grind the cheese on a grater with large cells and sprinkle the resulting crumb on top of the watermelon.
  5. Then scatter the seeds on a plate.
  6. The resulting mass is left to pepper and sprinkle with the remaining oil.

When serving such a dish of watermelon on the table, you must not forget to put a small plate next to it with lemon slices.

For the little ones

Choosing dishes from watermelon, recipes can be selected for everyone: for adults and for children. Toddlers should especially enjoy popsicles. This delicacy gives them a special pleasure. It needs quite a bit:

based on half a watermelon, take 1 lemon, 3 oranges and a little sugar to taste.

In order to prepare such ice cream, you need to follow a few simple steps:

  1. Cut the peeled pulp of watermelon into arbitrary pieces and load them into a blender.
  2. Pour the juice squeezed from the fruit there and add sugar.
  3. Mix the products well, pour the resulting mass into pre-prepared molds and put in the freezer for 3 hours. This time will be enough.

A fragrant dessert sure to please children. For them, you can cook other dishes from watermelon. Recipes and technology for their preparation are not complicated, but original taste and an unusual look will surely please the kids.

Medicinal mixtures

Watermelon and melon dishes are not only delicious. They are also very useful for humans. These products are able to increase immunity, remove harmful toxins from the body and simply cheer up. Very impressive, for example, looks on the table summer salad from fragrant melon and juicy watermelon. It consists of the following components:

0.5 kilograms of watermelon and melon pulp, 2 tablespoons of lime juice, 4 tablespoons of blackberries and a few sprigs of mint.

You can prepare the salad as follows:

  1. Cut out balls from the pulp of both products with a special spoon. Such devices are sold in hardware stores. Otherwise, you can just cut cubes of the same size.
  2. Mash the blackberries with a fork together with the juice into a pulp. If the berries taste a little sour, then you can add a little powdered sugar or honey.
  3. Combine the prepared products, mix and refrigerate to cool.

At the right time, all that remains is to put everything on plates and decorate the dish on top with mint leaves.

Preparations for the winter

Surprisingly, watermelons, like other products, can be harvested for the winter. Of course, because the human body needs vitamins all year round. How else can you save this delicate product? As a rule, watermelons are harvested in jars. To do this, you first need to prepare all the ingredients:

for 1 watermelon 50 grams of salt, 4 tablespoons of sugar and 100 grams of vinegar.

The cooking process is very similar to canning tomatoes:

  1. First you need to prepare the jars and lids.
  2. Then cut the watermelon into large slices along with the rind and place them tightly in jars.
  3. Pour boiling water over the products and wait 20 minutes.
  4. Then the water must be drained into a separate pan and prepare the marinade. To do this, pour salt, sugar into it and boil for 3 minutes.
  5. First, pour vinegar into each jar, and then fill it to the top with the prepared marinade and roll it up.

In winter, this unusual, but very delicious product it will be like a find. And if you also remember the benefits that watermelon brings, then you will want to eat it more and more often.

Unusual treat

It should be noted that jam is still the most common way of harvesting berries and fruits for future use. True, few people cook watermelon jam. But in vain. It tastes just like cherry or strawberry. There are two ways to prepare such a delicacy: from the pulp or from watermelon peels. In the first case, the mixture is very tender and more homogeneous. To prepare it, you will definitely need:

700 grams of ripe watermelon pulp, a kilogram of sugar, 10 grams each citric acid and vanilla sugar.

You need to cook this jam slowly:

  1. Cut the watermelon pulp into pieces, put in a basin, sprinkle with sugar and leave it in this state for a couple of hours. During this time, juice should stand out.
  2. Put the basin on the fire, bring the mixture to a boil and boil it over medium heat for about 15 minutes. After that, remove and leave to cool completely.
  3. These actions must be repeated 3 times.
  4. Last time at the end of cooking, pour the remaining ingredients into the basin and boil the mass for another 5 minutes.