Mass Watermelon Consumption

Summer fruits are in season (don't even get me started on the peaches and cherries!) and that means that watermelon recipes abound!  Last Thursday we hosted a video game night at S's place and one friend showed up with a watermelon that we at slices of that night.  I cubed the remaining half of the watermelon and used it the following day to whip up this delicious Spicy Watermelon Margarita to bring to our friends' 4th of July party.  Per my usual, rather than tossing in jalepenos as the recipe recommends, I used my habanero infused tequila to impart a little kick of spice.  Remember if you choose to do this yourself, habanero is much spicier than jalepeno and so you only need to infuse it in the tequila for a half an hour!

We wound up leaving the 4th of July party we went to with yet more leftover watermelon!  In one gallon sized bag we had giant chunks of the juicy fruit and in a second bag we had about a dozen wedges.  So the next day I put the giant chunks to use and whipped up another cocktail, this Watermelon Ginger Fizz.  The great part about this beverage is that it is easy to make a non-alcoholic version for the kiddos - just omit the vodka and top off with club soda for a gingery watermelon soda concoction!  We brought this to S's brother's house on Saturday and his son really liked that he could have a special drink like everyone else!

And yesterday I used up about half of those watermelon wedges to make these Watermelon Fontina Melts with Dill.  I made them once last year as well and I have 2 tips based on this second batch.

1. Let them sit a bit after they come out of the oven.  Once the cheese cools a bit you can taste its saltiness more and it really compliments the sweetness of the watermelon.
2. Use fresh dill.  I used a freeze dried version this time and it had no flavor.

We still have a few wedges left in the fridge and if I get a chance to do something with them before they go bad (it's been a busy week...), I'm thinking I might try this Watermelon, Avocado, Mint, and Feta Salad, or maybe this Watermelon and Strawberry Salad with Ginger Syrup, since I do have some ginger syrup left from the Ginger Fizz cocktail.  And then I'm taking a break from watermelon for a little while...