The Summer Standard: Watermelon

I remember when I was a kid we would spend a week visiting my mom’s family in Alabama.  It was always my favorite summer vacation.  There was always an abundance of food, lake time, food, card games, food, inner tubing, and oh wait, more food.  One of my favorite memories was going through my great uncle’s garden picking out tomatoes, okra, and watermelon.  I was taught that to find a good watermelon it needs to be symmetrical and firm.  But most importantly, one side needs a yellow spot.  The yellow spot means that it sat on the ground and had time to ripen.   Lastly, a watermelon is mostly water so the trick is to find a really heavy watermelon. 

Watermelon is such a great healthy food. It’s full of lycopene, vitamin A, B6, and C, and potassium!  It’s always important to get those vitamins but during the hot summer months when people can often get dehydrated and it’s even more vital we get those vitamins.

I made a great smoothie last week with strawberries and watermelon.  Smoothies are great because you just put in whatever you have on hand and they almost always turn out well.  I used strawberries, watermelon, fat-free vanilla yogurt, orange juice, and a tiny bit of milk.  It was great!

To go along with the standard summer fruit, I made a watermelon yoke dress for my daughter.  You can't get more summery than watermelon fabric.  This fabric is absolutely adorable.    I can order more fabric if anyone is interested in the perfect summer dress.