Watermelon Knife WORLDWIDE GIVEAWAY!

With this summers extreme heat nothing is more refreshing than iced cold watermelon.  But have you ever tried to slice a whole one?  It's difficult especially if you have a dull knife.  So when I laid my hands on this fun and superb Watermelon Knife one year ago,  I knew I just had to share it with my readers for a second time.

Made by Kuhn Rikon with it's seed shaped cut-outs, red blade and green handle - how whimsical can you get? Even with all it's whimsy this knife is made of high carbon Japanese steel and has a non-stick coating to insure quick food release. Plus with an ergonomic handle it allows you to apply pressure without losing your grip.

At just $30 it's a bargain and a great gift to give to a friend as well.  Don't take my word for it, check out the video above.  The Watermelon Knife slices watermelon as though it were slicing butter - smooth and easy!

What are you waiting for?  I know you're dying to get one for yourself and your friends.  You can purchase the  Watermelon Knife here and you can also enter my WORLDWIDE GIVEAWAY below.

All that's required to enter is:

• Comment below why you'd like to win the Watermelon Knife
• Follow my blog by Email (upper right corner of this blog), this way you'll never miss a post
• Follow me on Facebook
• Follow Kuhn Rikon on Facebook

One winner will be selected at Random on Friday, July 20th by 12:00pm Central Standard Time.

Kuhn Rikon who was so nice to offer this fantastic knife as a worldwide giveaway, will mail the knife directly to you.   So please be sure to leave your contact information when entering.  This way if you're selected at Random, I will be able to reach you for your mailing address.  If the winner does not respond within 48 hours another name will be drawn at Random.

With the Watermelon Knife you'll have as much fun looking at it as you will using it!  In fact, you might prefer to leave it out on display rather than in a drawer.

Good Luck!

The WINNER OF THE KUHN RIKON WATERMELON KNIFE IS ROSEMARY OR SPRIGS OF ROSEMARY.  ROSEMARY WAS THE 11th PERSON TO COMMENT.

CONGRATULATIONS ROSEMARY!

Here are a couple watermelon recipes you might like to try:
Watermelon Lime Salsa
Grilled Watermelon Salad with Goat Cheese and Balsamic Reduction

Grilled Salmon Burgers & More for Father's Day!

Father's Day is Sunday and many of you will have family over to BBQ for the occasion.  However, it's also bathing suit season and even though you might like to indulge in the burgers and ribs, you're really trying your best to watch the fat intake.  So what can you do when the menu is burgers and chicken, or ribs and chicken and you want fish?  Salmon Burgers to the rescue!

In addition to the other fare you're serving why not add something healthy like Salmon Burgers along with Sweet Potato Fries, chilled Watermelon, Goat Cheese and Arugula Salad and of course dessert - Chocolate Cups filled with Ice Cream Sundae?  OK so the dessert has a few more calories but YOU could use fat free yogurt in them.

I love these burgers and if you're a fan of salmon you will as well.  They're moist, delicious and so simple to prepare.   A one pound skinless fillet of salmon will make 4 nice size patties to pop on the grill or if preferred on the stove top or oven.  Check out this recipe and I think you'll agree these Salmon Burgers need to find a place on your Father's Day menu.

Salmon Burgers with Spicy Yogurt Sauce
serves 4

Ingredients:

Yogurt Sauce:

• 1 cup Greek Yogurt (I used 0% but use whatever you like)
• 1/2-1 tsp. of Sriracha Sauce
• 1/4 tsp. Sesame Oil

Blend ingredients together.  Place in refrigerator until ready to use.

If prefer a milder sauce blend the Greek yogurt with 1/4 of the cucumber and a sprig of fresh dill.  Blend in processor or blender, chill until ready to serve.

Salmon Burger:

• 1 pound salmon fillet, skinned, cut in half
• 2 shallots, peeled and quartered
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise (use whatever type you have on hand.  I used fat free)
• 1/2 cup Panko crumbs (Japanese bread crumbs)

Toppings:

• 4 Whole Grain Hamburger buns
• 4 crisp lettuce leaves
• sliced tomatoes
• ribbon sliced English cucumber (with mandoline, cut cucumber in 1/2 and ribbon slice)
• Yogurt Sauce

Directions:

•  In a food processor, combine all  ingredients and pulse until well combined, leave slightly chunky like hamburger meat.
•  Form into 4 equal patties. (Spray patties with non-stick spray to avoid sticking to grill.)   

    

•  Preheat the barbecue for medium-high heat grilling. Cook the burgers 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until just cooked through the center and golden brown. Alternately, in a large saute or grill pan add 2 Tbsp. of canola oil and turn to medium heat. Place the burgers in the pan and saute for 3 to 4 minutes per side or until just cooked through the center. 
• Put a lettuce leaf and 2 slices of tomato on the bottom bun, place the burger on top, adding 2 ribboned, sliced cucumbers then top with yogurt sauce.  Place bun on top and serve.  YUM!!!

Sweet Potato Fries:

• Preheat oven to 425F degrees.
• Peel and slice 3 Sweet Potatoes.  Cut into wedges or using a mandoline cut into matchsticks.
• Line a sheet pan with heavy duty foil and spray with non-stick spray. 
• Lay sweet potato slices on pan and place in oven for approximately 20-30 minutes or until cooked how you like.  (My husband likes them crispy).

Here's another healthy burger you might like to try.

Happy Father's Day!  Have a great weekend!

Summer Fun - Gadget Giveaway!

If you've been reading my blog a while or subscribe to my monthly newsletter you know how much I love gadgets and GIVEAWAYS! 

With this summers extreme heat nothing is more refreshing than iced cold watermelon.  But have you ever tried to slice a whole one?  It's difficult especially if you have a dull knife.  So when I laid my eyes on this fun Watermelon Knife I knew I just had to share it with my viewers.

Made by Kuhn Rikon with it's seed shaped cut-outs, red blade and green handle - how whimsical can you get? Even with all it's whimsy this knife is made of high carbon Japanese steel and has a non-stick coating to insure quick food release. Plus with an ergonomic handle it allows you to apply pressure without losing your grip.

At just under $25 it's a bargain and a great gift to give to a friend as well.  Don't take my word for it, check out this video.  The Watermelon Knife slices watermelon as though it were slicing butter - smooth and easy!




What are you waiting for?  I know you're dying to get one for yourself and your friends.  You can purchase the  Watermelon Knife here and you can also enter my giveaway below.

All that's required to enter is:

• Comment below why you'd like to win the Watermelon Knife


• Follow my blog by Email (upper right corner of this blog), this way you'll never miss a post


• Although not required please follow Kuhn Rikon on Twitter

One winner will be selected at Random on Friday, August 12th by 12:00pm Central Standard Time.

Kuhn Rikon who was so nice to offer this fantastic knife as a giveaway, will mail the knife directly to you.   So please be sure to leave your contact information when entering.  This way if you're selected at Random, I will be able to reach you for your mailing address.  If the winner does not respond within 48 hours another name will be drawn at Random.

With the Watermelon Knife you'll have as much fun looking at it as you will using it!  In fact, you might prefer to leave it out on display rather than in a drawer.

Good Luck!

CONGRATULATIONS!  THE WINNER OF THE WATERMELON KNIFE GIVEAWAY IS:

Elizabeth@foodandthriftfinds

Elizabeth please be sure to contact me within 48 hours from now so that Kuhn Rikon can send you this fabulous knife. 

Watermelon Lime Salsa!

Summer is the time to bring out all the fresh fruits and vegetables and create dishes that are refreshing and healthy.  Although we should do this all year, it appears that during the summer we think about it more.  Maybe because we're getting into our bathing suits or because the weather is warmer and heavy foods just don't sound appetizing.

At any rate, I wanted to grill some fish last night with a fresh salsa but unfortunately when I arrived at the grocery store where we are vacationing, in the mountains of Colorado, their selection was marginal.  So I opted for chicken breasts instead.

Since my husband is a maniac about watermelon, which is packed with lots of nutrition, I decided that I would make a Watermelon Salsa.  It sounded good to me so I figured I would use watermelon in place of the usual tomatoes and add other similar ingredients like the salsas I've made in the past.  I do that a lot, do you?

I wanted to make sure that the salsa was colorful so this is what I came up with.  It was so delicious that I almost ate the entire bowl.  Unfortunately, I wasn't able to since my family ate the rest.  So much for leftovers!

Speaking of leftovers - a fresh salsa will last covered and refrigerated for only 5 days.  If you prepare a cooked salsa it will last up to 6 months in the refrigerater, covered.

Watermelon Lime Salsa
serves 4 (because you'll gobble it all up)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 -2 cups watermelon, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
1/2 cucumber, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch cubes
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
1 jalepeno pepper, seeded and minced (be careful not to touch your eyes or skin after removing the seeds.  It will burn severely)
2 green scallions, thinly sliced
2 limes, juice of both and zest of one lime
1 Tbsp. minced cilantro

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together, cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to chill and let the flavors meld together.

Serve with chicken, fish or alone as a side dish.  It's that good.

I love salsa recipes.  So if you have one that you love, I'd welcome you to share it with everyone in my comments section below.  Then I'll try it and post about it.

If you like watermelon like we do you might enjoy this link that shares a lot of watermelon recipes.

Also, here's my post for the Grilled Watermelon Salad with Goat Cheese and Balsamic Reduction in case you missed it.

Enjoy!

Grilled Watermelon Salad with Goat Cheese and Balsamic Reduction

There's nothing better than watermelon in the summer.  Whether having it as a side dish, dessert, watermelon gazpacho or salad, it's refreshing and light.  

This sweet, juicy watermelon is actually packed with some of the most important antioxidants in nature.  An excellent source of vitamin C and a very good source of vitamin A  it's so refreshing and light, I could literally sit down and eat and entire bowl and not feel stuffed.  This is probably due to the fact that's it's packed with 92% water, making it an extremely thirst-quenching fruit. Plus, it has a good concentration of lycopene, it's rich in B vitamins necessary for energy production and magnesium and potassium. And at only 48 calories per cup, it packs more nutrients per calorie - an outstanding health benefit!

Of course, all this helps to know when I eat buckets full.  However, I eat it mostly because I just love it and it's so refreshing and satisfying. 

So last night I decided to make BBQ Salmon with a Grilled Watermelon Salad with Goat Cheese, and a Balsamic Reduction.  Since I had some pineapple I decided to add that to the grill as well and set that under my salmon for a light and luscious meal. 

The Watermelon Salad was so delicious that I thought I'd share the recipe with you.  For my next post I'll share my salmon dish that I think you'll enjoy as well.  All are so simple to prepare in addition to being healthy and delicious!

In the recipe below, adjust the amount of watermelon needed for the amount of people you're serving.


Grilled Watermelon Salad with Goat Cheese and Balsamic Reduction

Ingredients:

Watermelon (seedless)
Spring Mix lettuce or Arugula
Balsamic Vinegar
Olive Oil
Goat Cheese, crumbled

Directions:

For each serving cut 2 rectangular pieces of watermelon (about 3"x2") and set out on a paper towel for approximately 30 minutes.  This will absorb the extra water in the melon and allow it to get to room temperature before grilling.

Prior to grilling rub just one side of each piece of watermelon with olive oil.  Place each piece, oil side down, onto a very hot grill.   Grill just the one side for about 8 minutes.  After about 4 minutes you can rotate the watermelon to create hatch marks, if desired.

Place one piece grill side down on a plate.  Top with Spring Mix or Arugula.  Then place the other grilled piece of watermelon with the grill marks facing up on top of the Spring Mix. Set a couple pieces of the Spring Mix on top with some goat cheese crumbles.  Additionally, sprinkle some of the goat cheese around the plate and drizzle with the balsamic reduction.  (My balsamic reduction moved a bit as I moved my plate to the outdoors for photo taking).

Balsamic Reduction:

Take one bottle of balsamic vinegar and place in a heavy duty saucepan.  Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and reduce until just 1/4 of the vinegar is remaining in the pan.  It will be thick and sweet.  Perfect for salads, ice cream on fruit, etc.  Cool before serving. 

Store in a squirt bottle for easy serving.  Will last indefinitely.

Serve and enjoy this light, delicious and refreshing salad!

Have a Happy & Safe 4th of July!