Mark
Twain was a great fan of the watermelon, as is clear from his famous words:
“It is the chief of
this world's luxuries, king by the grace of God over all the fruits of the
earth. When one has tasted it, he knows what the angels eat. It was not a
Southern watermelon that Eve took; we know it because she repented.”
The
Oxford English Dictionary’s words on
watermelon are, as to be expected, rather more prosaic. It gives the definition
of the watermelon as “A kind of gourd, Citrullus
vulgaris (formerly Cucumis citrullus),
and explains that they “are so called from the abundance of watery juice.”
The
first reference in English is given by the OED as occurring in 1615, but I
particularly like the description given in The
History of the Caribby-islands by John Davies, published in 1666. He says:
There
grows in these Countries another kind of Melons which are common in Italy, but
must needs be incomparably better in Egypt and the Levant … they are called
Water-Melons, because they are full of a sugar’d water, intermingled with their
meat, which ordinarily is of a Vermilion colour, and red as blood about the
heart, wherein are consained their feed, which is also of the same colour, and sometimes
black: their rind continues always green, and without any scent, so that it is
rather by the stalk then the fruit that their ripeness is to be discover'd:
they are sometimes bigger then a man’s head, either round, or oval: they are
eaten without Salt, and though a man feed liberally on them, yet do they not
offend the stomack: but in those hot Countries they are very cooling, and cause
appetite.
As
I am sure Mark Twain would agree, without doubt the best way to eat watermelon is the
simplest, messiest, way – in the form of freshly-cut, thick, juicy,
smiley-shaped slices. But we are always tempted to fiddle even with perfection,
are we not? And also, sometimes nature and gardeners provide a huge surplus for
us, which we must use, must we not? And we cannot not waste the rind from those
freshly-cut, thick, juicy, smiley-shaped slices, can we? So we must create
recipes to cope with this abundance, and first and foremost and best-known and
most popularly, we can make pickles with the rind.
Watermelon
Pickle
Do
not throw away the rind of melons. It can be preserved and will make a
delicious relish. Remove the green rind of watermelon and the inside pink
portion that is left on after eating it. Cut it into two-inch pieces and pour
over it a weak brine made in proportion of one cup of salt to a gallon of hot
water. Let this stand overnight, then drain and add clear water and one level
tablespoon of alum. Boil in this water until the rind has a clear appearance.
Drain and pour ice water over the rind and allow it to stand a short time. In a
bag put one teaspoon each of cloves, allspice, cinnamon and ginger and place
this in the preserve kettle with the vinegar and sugar. Allow one cup of sugar
and one cup of vinegar (dilute this with
water if too strong) to every pound of rind. Thin slices of lemon will give it
a pleasant flavor--allow one lemon to about four pounds of rind. Bring this
syrup to the boiling point and skim. Add the melon and cook until tender. It is
done when it becomes perfectly transparent and can be easily pierced with a
broom straw. A peach kernel in the cooking syrup will improve the flavor.
Housewives who object to the use of alum can omit this and merely wash the rind
after removing from brine to free it from all salt and then cook it slowly as
per directions given above. The alum keeps the rind firm and retains its color.
In this case the rind will require long and steady cooking, say three-quarters
of an hour or longer. As soon as rinds are cooked they should be put into the containers
and covered with the syrup.
The
International Jewish Cook Book (New York, 1919)
by Florence Kreisler Greenbaum.
If
not pickle, why not jam? Or a variation on a marmalade theme?
Watermelon Jam.
Take
41b. watermelon, 41b. white sugar, 4 large fresh lemons.
Mode:
Peel and remove seeds from melon, cut into pieces about l in. diameter, place
in preserving pan, and sprinkle with half the sugar. Let stand all night. In
morning wipe lemons with damp cloth, but do not wash them. Put them in
preserving pan or enamel saucepan. Just cover them with boiling water, and boil
them slowly for two hours, changing the water three or four times during this
process (in each case the clean water must be boiling). Cool the lemons slightly,
then cut them into thin slices, removing all the pips and about half of the
pulp.
If
all the pulp is used the jam will be too sour. Start the melon boiling, and
when about half done add the lemon and the remaining 2 lb.sugar. Let all boil
up quickly, and boil altogether for two hours. The syrup should be jelly. Well
worth, the trouble of making.
Sunday Times (Perth, WA.) 11 April 1920
Watermelon
Marmalade.
6
cups ground watermelon rind
6
cups sugar
2
oranges
Remove
green and pink portions from rind. Grind, drain off the liquid; measure, add
sugar, and allow to stand 30 minutes. Slice entire oranges as thinly as
possible, add to rind and sugar, and cook until think and clear about 45
minutes. Pour into sterilized jars and seal.
The
Washington Post (1923-1954);
Aug 18, 1934.
If
you still prefer to keep it fresh and raw, salad is an excellent idea too:
Watermelon
Salad.
Fill
a bowl with pieces of ripe water melon, broken off with a fork. Pour over it a
good salad dressing, and put in cool place for 20 minutes before serving. A
good dressing is made with 1 dessertspoonful of sugar, ½ a teapoonful each of
dry mustard and salt, 3 teaspoonfuls of vinegar, and 2 teaspoonfuls of thick
cream or condensed milk. If using condensed milk, leave out the sugar.
Advocate
(Burnie, Tasmania) 8 February 1930.
Fresh
Pear, Watermelon and Ginger Salad.
Arrange
thin slices of fresh pear in lettuce cups with balls of watermelon. Sprinkle
finely chopped candied ginger over the top and serve with cream. French or
honey fruit dressing. Enlarged, this salad is appropriate for a hot weather
supper dish.
The Washington
Post
July 8, 1938.
Finally,
I give you watermelon ice:
Water
Melon Velvet
Three
cupfuls pureed melon, pulp and juice; 1 cupful sugar; dash of salt, 2
tablespoonfuls lemon Juice; 1 ½ teaspoonfuls gelatine.
Add
sugar, salt, lemon juice to melon puree. Add water to gelatine and place over
boiling water and heat until gelatine is dissolved. Add to melon mixture and blend
thoroughly. Pour into refrigerator tray, setting control at coldest point, and
freeze until almost firm. Then turn into chilled bowl and beat quickly with
rotary beater until thick and fluffy. Return immediately to freezing tray and
continue freezing until firm.
If
it is a hand freezer you have, place mixture in scalded, chilled freezer,
freeze until firm, using one part salt to eight parts crushed ice. Remove
dasher, pack down, cover with a mixture of one part salt to four parts ice and let
ripen one hour or until serving time.
Yield:
one and one-fourth quarts.
Queensland Times (Ipswich, Qld.) Monday 30 December 1946.
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