MikeMooreMedia
Watermelon 07.11.24
It's our monthly podcast with Debbie Moose and Raleigh food writer cookbook author Debbie. Hey, how are you? We're good over here. We're good. Hope y'all doing okay over there We are over here all is good and a good time of the year for all of those Good things from the garden and today. Oh, what's the top of you today watermelon? Is that right? Yes, we could talk about all sorts of wonderful things, but I Have seen the light brothers and sisters and I am a convert to a watermelon lover I mean, I liked it. Okay, you know, I wasn't as crazy about my husband a door that he'll go through You know watermelon a day if he left alone, but I'll never was crazy about it You know, I prefer to have a good cantaloupe. You know, I still like a good cantaloupe Mm-hmm. I don't know. I maybe it's because of how hot it's been or We've gotten some really good ones. Mm-hmm, but I have developed a real taste of watermelon Well good for you and any other two things there and then the temperature or how hot it is and and just it's so refreshing and So yeah, so that's good and I've never been a big watermelon person either, but recently It seems to be a lot better to me if you get a good watermelon. It's really good. Yeah Yeah, just hit the spot. Mm-hmm. It does hit some spots. My parents used to hit the spot Mm-hmm, and especially I've become more of a fan since They developed the the little watermelons when they call personal size watermelons about the size of a soccer ball or something because the big ones You can't fit them in the refrigerator and you know For even for just the two of us Is a big one is like that? Ridiculous with his people You only got them if you're having a big party, you know for tonight party you get a big watermelon. Mm-hmm. Or when I was in college Pails of my misbent youth We would get one and inject it with vodka. Oh, okay So, yeah, but since they came up with the small ones That has just reopened the whole potential for watermelon in my house This is the small amount. It's not huge and and they're they're good. The variety seem to be getting more and more tasty and Also, I've always thought watermelon was just you know, it tastes good, you know, but what can possibly be in there? But apparently there's actually a lot of nutrients in there and it is Very hydrating the New York Times had an article the other week about All the nutrients and everything in watermelon and it is hydrating They said eating about 10 ounces, you know, or wedge or so. It's like drinking a full cup of water Mm-hmm. Yeah, and when you have when you have a spouse like mine who never wants to drink water That's good. It is. So he's he's getting it that way Yeah, and you're right. I remember as a kid you get those big watermelons and you know, the refrigerators were Smaller back then too. Yeah growing up. Yeah, so that that was always an issue Yeah, you had to have some gathering or a reunion or something going on. Yeah, so um, yeah, whoever came up with um Those little ones smaller ones. That was a great idea Well, what you did back in the day if you were having a picnic because you got like a bucket of ice or cold water Right and just put the watermelon in out in the yard But yeah, you know, and you can buy in the grocery store You can buy them already cut wedges, but those are going to dry up on you. They're not going to taste very good. Right. Um But yeah, those little ones. I don't know who invented those but I came up with that variety, but I hope they're making a lot of my safety And watermelon actually has Not as much sugar as you might think It tastes sweet, but it's not Apparently not as sweet overall as say blueberries an equal amount of blueberries mean from sugar content if you're concerned about that and Let's see what else did this say? It does have a lot of Actual nutrients in it. Now the thing about watermelon is um Unlike strawberries and peaches and all those other wonderful things You can't really preserve it Now you can make the watermelon rind pickles. Did you ever have any of those? Oh my goodness now you're talking about lip smacking Oh, I would now I want some of those right now. I gotta go find them. Yeah, those are so good. Hmm You can do that with it. Yeah, um, but as far as the watermelon itself, you can't you can't make that I mean now you can make I have made watermelon jelly Um, you basically take the watermelon and you know turn into liquid and then make the jelly from that. Okay And that's quite good Um But as preserving it itself, you really can't so you pretty much have to just eat it As you get it. That's right. Yeah And have you ever seen the yellow watermelon? I have yes, mm-hmm What do you think about that? Well, you know, it's kind of like we bought some tomatoes from a market yesterday And Annette wanted the one of those purple ones, you know Yeah, which I don't like so I got I got mine. She got hers But yeah, no, I want to I want to know a watermelon like a watermelon should be yeah Pink yeah, just like red a nice Red would be even better. Yeah, so yeah, that's yeah. Well, I I bought one of the yellow ones. Um, what? Because for some well for some re when I wanted to try it for some reason They had the smaller size in the yellow ones. I'll try it. It tasted fine but It was the visual it was looking at it. That's my eyes and ate it. Mm-hmm. It tastes it's fine But then if I open my eyes and let it yellow That's just not wrong. You're you know, your brain is so used to To the red. Um, it was a little bit of a brain shot, but if I like to have a close my eyes It tastes really good. Mm-hmm And most of the watermelons now are seedless, but you don't get to have that seed spitting contest. No, yeah, I miss those too. Gosh How'd you ever do in those? We couldn't get down No, I don't think I was ever in one, but that was a big deal way back. There wasn't it. Yeah Oh, we had him out in the yard, you know, he had something with all those seeds. Yeah, and If we did, I don't remember, you know, that's so far back, but uh, yeah, it's good to have no seeds I guess unless you like me and other people, you know, they can't do the seed spitting contest anymore That's good july fourth competition there. I imagine Now because the watermelon is so, you know has to look sweetness. Mm-hmm. A lot of people Restaurants are using it in salads with salty things like the classic combination has become beta cheese and watermelon Okay Because you have that salty from the fade and that sweetness from the watermelon and you have more contrast That's the white and the red unless you use yellow, which you do you if you want to on that um And that is a really great combination That sweet and salty. I mean, well, it's like peanuts in a cocola. You know, we all love sure that's right. Yeah and You know, you can use it for salads that way and um You know, so some red onion in there. I believe in Vivian Howard's cookbook She's got a recipe for it and I can't remember the technique now But she did something to press the watermelon to get some of the listed out so it's more the cubes and more firm Before putting them in there You know, which is helpful. You know, you don't have so much laying around and I think there's either a parsley or cilantro um And that's a super easy little salad And of course, a lot of people use it in gazcacho Instead of the tomatoes or along with the tomatoes So it's it's it's a versatile thing with a watermelon Yeah, you can use it for other things too. Yeah, besides just eating it straight But I have I have become I've become a fan of watermelon. I was always like nad much rather Well, I'd still rather have a peach rather choice, but you know it is Sometimes I would just soon have it as a cantaloupe Yeah, but it was always my favorite of the melon family. Yeah, and I don't know what it is. I do think maybe it's been the heat which Let's not talk about you know No, anything about it. No heat conversation I would like to give just I would like just give a little thought to the farmers who are Kind of trying to keep growing all these wonderful vegetables through all this heat on the ground and And give us all for them. Yeah, it's hard We have a peach orchard. I mentioned it before We were there yesterday. We made the rounds and uh, oh, it's it's been difficult peach growing season here Yeah So and so far so good here, but it's I bet it's gonna be a short one. Yeah, probably will be Yeah, have you ever you ever grown planet grown any watermelons? Have you ever grown watermelon? Yeah, have you? No, no, I don't have that much room. Yeah, okay. Now much I think my father No, he would grow cantaloupe. She didn't grow watermelons Because I think my parents my mother wasn't that crazy about them. I mean The thing to do when I was growing up was she got a watermelon on the 4th of july And you ate it in the backyard with your picnic and your Neighbors coming over and you know the kids running around and spit seeds at each other And then that was about it for watermelon. That was pretty much it. Yeah It was a you know a 4th of july fun food Oh, I bet you could also make probably some really good popsicles out of watermelon. Mm-hmm. Do you sit? Yeah? And that's probably been done. You know, you can buy those plastic things that you can make your own popsicles out of Sure Yeah, me try that today. We've got some water watermelon You know and it's um, there's a um Uh a drive through a drive, you know, one of the fast food places here They're all over. Um, I will not give them a plug here But apparently they do have some wonderful milkshakes and some seasonal things Watermelon is one of the favorites this time of the year watermelon milkshakes That's a hard idea for me because I would be afraid it would be too sweet now a watermelon popsicle Or sorbet of course is a natural for making sorbet. Yeah Um, and you wouldn't need to add that much sugar to it um but the Watermelon with some some fated cheese. I'm kind of thinking about that now That would be very refreshing, but I have now become a convert and I need to Besides the heat figure out why I had some the other day. I wanted we were I was out of cantaloupe And there was some of my husband's watermelon. I bet I thought was gone. This is good I'm going to start eating this. Yeah, I might buy two of those all the ones a week instead of one now sure Yeah one for you and and and one Um one for rob Although there are no seeds to spit. No But um Interesting how that's changed too. Isn't it over the years? No, both people didn't walling them. Yeah, um, see he's got a band wrap. You know this And the spitting skills of this generation have gone rapidly downhill minor right minor very rusty. I probably wouldn't do very well Yeah, but uh, you're right. It's it's going to be a lost art before you know it That's a shame so You know if Anyone who's concerned, which we all should be concerned about the farmers in this weather and climate change. Yeah, the best thing you can do is patronize them go out and get some of those Wonderful locally grown watermelons or peaches or corn or probably going to be a short season on that too Mm-hmm. Um, it's hard to find. Yes out there and and give them some support give them some love because they're Their face. We're complaining about the heat. They're they're facing a hard time. They really are. Yeah, so buying local produce Um, get those fruits and vegetables right here wherever you are in support those local markets. Yep Okay, well now one other fun fact that I bet you didn't know about watermelon North Carolina is the fifth Largest watermelon producer in the country. I didn't know that. No. Oh wow in the top five then number five. So That's good. There you are. There's a fun fact for the day. Yeah. Well, thank you for that I um now i'm just still craving Watermelon rind pickles. So I think I may I think I may know a little little place that Possibly has that Uh, and i'll be in that area for a meeting later today. So I think i'll go there first Um Debbie always always good to talk to you. Thank you Well, so good to talk to you and um have a good one and um take care Yep, you too and enjoy um those good things from the garden with our local farmers and have some watermelon Today, it's good for you. Thank you. Debbie. All right. Bye. Bye. Bye. It's debbie moose in rolly Debbie is a cookbook conference. She's written a number of books and uh, you'll find her uh right there Um at debbie moose.com to see what she's up to . [BLANK_AUDIO]