Proud Italian Cook

Fresh Watermelon Cake

June 30, 2015 by Marie 5 Comments

Here’s a fun and creative way to serve up your next watermelon, carve it into a “cake”!

Who doesn’t love watermelon, it’s a summer staple usually always present at cookouts and parties. This “cake” is made with sweet refreshing watermelon that has been carved and shaped into a cake, it gets frosted with fresh whipped cream and is decorated with fresh summer berries, this could be the perfect red, white and blue cake for your Fourth of July party.

I’ve seen this done online and I couldn’t wait to try it myself, I was skeptical about putting the cream on a wet surface but all you do is pat the melon down really good with paper towels after it’s cut, and I was pleasantly surprised how easy and quick it was to put it all together.

I actually made this early in the morning, had it all frosted and garnished, stuck it in my fridge and pulled it out later in the evening and it was flawless, everything stayed in tact, in fact the cream set up so nice and firm and it was so easy to cut into nice wedges, even leftovers the next day were perfect!

Find yourself a nice round seedless watermelon, you’re going to be cutting the top and bottom off so pick a size according to how many guests you’ll be serving.

The first thing I recommend doing is whipping your cream, you want very stiff peaks and then refrigerate it, get it nice and cold. Have all your berries washed and ready to go. You can garnish your “cake” with whatever you want, berries, nuts, sprinkles, slivered almonds, coconut or other fruit of your choice, make it your own and be creative!

The trimming was easier than I thought, after you remove the top and bottom stand it upright and start slicing the dark outer green rind off all the way around and make sure you see none of the light green rind underneath showing either, take your time and start trimming and shaping it to look like a cake.

When you’re done trimming it put it on top of the platter you’ll be serving it on, don’t worry it doesn’t have to be perfectly shaped.

The whipped cream will hide all the imperfections and so will all your added fruit and garnishes.

It’s unexpected, impressive and a guaranteed show stopper when you bring it out to the table and no baking required!

Happy Summer and Happy 4th!

Fresh Watermelon Cake

Refreshing, unexpected and a beautiful way to serve a watermelon, transformed to look like a cake. It's healthy and delicious too!

Author: Marie

Ingredients

1 whole seedless watermelon
3 cups of heavy whipping cream ( you'll probably have some extra)
½ teaspoon of vanilla
2 tablespoons of confectioners sugar or other sweetener like stevia
assorted fresh berries and other garnishes of your choice like nuts, sliced almonds, coconut, sprinkles, etc.

Instructions

First whip your cream with the confectioners sugar and vanilla, whip until you get nice stiff peeks, then refrigerate bowl.
Wash and dry the whole watermelon.
With a sharp knife slice the top and bottom off.
Standing upright begin removing the dark green rind all around.
Keep trimming the sides removing the light green rind underneath and trimming it into a nice cylinder shape.
Wipe and pat dry the cylinder with paper towels to remove excess moisture.
Place shaped and patted dry melon on serving platter.
Spread cold whipped cream all over with a rubber spatula, top and sides.
Garnish with berries or other things of your choice.
At this point you can refrigerate it until ready to cut. I placed the whole platter into my fridge and didn't cover it, but if you had a cake plate topper that would fit over the top, that would be fine too but not necessary.
If you have some of the "cake"remaining after cutting just refrigerate soon after so the whipped cream doesn't melt down, especially on a hot day.

5 Comments Filed Under: Fruit, Party Foods, Summer Tagged: Fourth of July, fresh fruit, gluten free, grain free, red white and blue, summer fruits, watermelon

Summer Carrot Ribbon Salad

June 26, 2015 by Marie 3 Comments

Thin ribbons of rainbow colored carrots are the star in this salad, they add crunch and beautiful vibrant colors of purple, yellow and orange. This salad is perfect for a hot summer day, it’s garden fresh, healthy and light.

This is a different version of a rainbow carrot ribbon salad I made a couple of years ago, here.

This time I added crunchy radishes, Persian cucumber ribbons, red onion, yellow and red pepper strips, arugula, a handful of toasted hazelnuts, and for a little heat, thin slices of jalapeno.

I like to keep the dressing nice and light by either using a simple vinaigrette or one of my favorites, olive oil and fresh lemon juice whisked together with a little parmesan cheese or another favorite of mine I’ll post in the recipe section.

For a fabulous light summer meal add some grilled shrimp or fish on the side, then you won’t feel guilty about a nice sweet dessert!

5.0 from 1 reviews

Summer Carrot Ribbon Salad

A colorful,crunchy, light and healthy summer salad using the freshest produce of the season!

Author: Marie

Ingredients

1 bunch of rainbow carrots, made into thin ribbons using a vegetable peeler
½ red onion, sliced into strips
1 yellow and red pepper cut into strips
2 or 3 Persian cucumbers, made into ribbons using a vegetable peeler
8 radishes, sliced thin
a large handful of arugula or fresh spinach
1 small jalapeno, thinly sliced ( optional)
a small handful of toasted hazelnuts, slightly crushed
CREAMY LEMON PARMESAN DRESSING
3 heaping tablespoons of good mayonnaise
3 tablespoons of lemon juice
3 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons of grated parmesan
a pinch of salt and cracked pepper
Whisk everything together, taste for seasoning.

Instructions

Gently toss all salad ingredients into a bowl, place on a nice platter, then drizzle dressing over the top when ready to eat.
LIGHTER LEMON PARMESAN DRESSING
All ingredients as in the creamy version, minus the mayonnaise, whisk together and drizzle on top os salad ingredients.

3 Comments Filed Under: Salads, Summer Tagged: carrot ribbons, carrots, rainbow carrots

Last Minute Cookout Sides

June 18, 2015 by Marie 7 Comments

With Father’s Day right around the corner you might want to add a couple more side dishes to your menu if you’ll be having a cookout. Here’s a few inexpensive and simple to make ideas that are always a hit and look quite impressive.

Nothing is more inviting than a big platter of grilled vegetables, it’s colorful, healthy and there’s something for everyone and they go with everything! I toss or brush my veggies with olive oil, salt and pepper then stick them on the grill, this all can be done the day before.

After they cool down I like to store my veggies in a large container in layers between sheets of foil, just get them to room temperature before serving.

I like to serve them with a dip of some sort, one of my favorites is this Feta and Red Pepper Dip. It’s adapted from an old Cooks Illustrated recipe. So simple to make, everything goes into a food processor, the flavors are fantastic and go wonderful with the grilled veggies. (recipe below)

I grilled up some asparagus, broccolini, red pepper, cauliflower, eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, and slices of red potatoes.

Another popular side are these Roasted Plum Tomatoes with Whole Garlic Cloves.

I like using the plum tomatoes because you only need a couple on your plate, and they too go with everything. The thing that takes them over the top is the addition of whole roasted garlic cloves, they’re soft, sweet and when mingled with the oil and tomato juice, my oh my!

I roast the peeled garlic cloves ahead of time in a foil packet, just drizzle with olive oil, add salt and pepper and some herbs if you like. Fold up the packet, roast at 375 for around 45 minutes or until soft.

For the tomatoes, use 6 or 7 plums, cut in half lengthwise and placed in a shallow baking dish with 1/2 cup of olive oil, fresh thyme, rosemary, dried oregano, salt and pepper. Distribute the pre-roasted garlic all around and roast at 400 degrees until tomatoes start to burst and the juices begin to mingle with the oil. You could then finish it off by placing the pan under the broiler for a few seconds for a deeper color, but don’t walk away, keep watching. Garnish with fresh snipped basil.

Here’s an oldie but goodie in my archives. Grilled Potato and Asparagus Napoleon, it’s layered with tangy goat cheese and grilled red pepper and garnished with balsamic glaze and olives, so easy to make and it tastes out of this world good!