Thursday, March 15, 2007

Watermelon

Spring. Ok, I guess it is more like Summer here in FL, but the sun is out everyday which always puts folks in a good mood. I, on the other hand, am less focused on the weather and more focused on the foods and flavors of summer. Basil, cilantro, mangoes, fish, tomatoes... Gone are the days of heavy, wintertime comfort food.


Give me watermelons! Seedless watermelons are wonderful (unless you want to have a seed spitting contest). They are even better when they are on sale. I was thinking sorbet but since the water content of watermelon is so high compared to the sugar, this turned out to be more of a granita made in an ice cream maker. It is made very simply by blending all the fruit in the blender then adding simple syrup (1 cup water, 1 cup sugar dissolved). You might have to adjust the syrup level depending on the sweetness of the fruit. You can use an ice cream maker or just pour it in a large pan (you'll be surprised at how much you get from 1 watermelon!) and set it in the freezer for a few hours. Scrap the surface with a fork when you first see ice crystals forming on the topmost layer then repeat until it freezes all the way through and is nicely textured. That takes way too long for me and requires some careful freezer temperature monitoring as well.

Experiment with all the summer flavors now available. If I could actually grow enough basil, that would be the first thing I'd try.

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