Melon Bacon Boats Food

RANCH SALAD BOATS WITH BACON

Steps:

• Make the dressing: Combine the buttermilk, sour cream, mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons each chives and dill, the lemon juice and hot sauce in a blender. Blend until very smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Cook the bacon in a medium skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
• To serve, arrange the lettuce leaves on a platter and top with the tomatoes, radishes, cucumber and bacon. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle most of the dressing over the salad and serve the remaining dressing on the side. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon each chives and dill.

WATERMELON BOAT

Steps:

• Combine lemon juice, sugar and flour in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Stir 1/4 cup into eggs; return all to pan. Cook and stir for 15 minutes or until mixture coasts a spoon (do not boil). Cool. Fold in whipped cream; cover and chill until serving. , For watermelon boat, cut a thin slice from bottom of melon with a sharp knife to allow it to sit flat (see diagram at right). Mark a horizontal cutting line 2 in. above center of melon. With a long sharp knife, cut into melon along cutting line, making sure to cut all the way through. Gently pull off top section of rind. , Remove fruit from both sections and cut into cubes or balls; set aside. To cut decorative edge, place melon on its side. Position a 2-1/2-in. star cookie cutter against inside edge of melon, allowing only half of star to cut through rind (see diagram below). Use a mallet if necessary to help push cookie cutter through melon. , Insert a toothpick into flat edge of removed piece. Attach piece onto melon edge where last cut ends. Repeat cutting and attaching pieces until entire melon edge is completed. , In a large bowl, combine honeydew, cantaloupe, strawberries, grapes and watermelon; spoon into boat. Serve with dressing.

STUFFED ZUCCHINI BOATS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400˚ F. Drizzle a rimmed baking sheet with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Season the zucchini halves with salt and pepper. Add to the baking sheet and turn to coat with the oil. Arrange the zucchini cut-side down in a single layer. Roast until crisp-tender, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 4 minutes. Stir in the cumin and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper; cook 30 seconds. Add the turkey and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and chicken broth until combined. Cook until the broth is reduced to a thick sauce, 4 to 5 minutes.
• Turn the zucchini boats cut-side up and fill with the turkey mixture, packing it in. Sprinkle with the cheese and roast until the zucchini is tender and the cheese is softened, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, stir together the yogurt and lemon juice; season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the zucchini boats with the yogurt mixture and top with the dill.

ROCKIN' CELERY BOATS

Steps:

• Cut the celery into 4-inch-long pieces, then slice off a thin edge at the rounded part of the stalk to help them lie flat while stuffing. Place them in a bowl of ice water and refrigerate until ready to stuff.
• In a bowl, toss the pecans with the honey, butter, cayenne and salt, making sure the nuts are well coated. Spread on a baking sheet, bake until nuts are toasted, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool completely.
• Chop pecans coarsely in a food processor. Add the cream cheese and process until smooth. Remove celery from the refrigerator, drain and dry well. Scrape cream cheese/nut mixture out of the food processor into a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip. Fill each celery boat with a generous amount of the mixture.
• Cut the jalapenos into thick strips, and then cut each strip in half at an angle. This should look like a sail. Garnish each of your celery boats with its red jalapeno sail.

GRILLED BACON, EGG AND CHEESE ZUCCHINI BOATS

Steps:

• Prepare a grill for medium-high indirect heat: For gas grills (with 3 or more burners), turn all the burners to medium-high heat; after about 15 minutes turn off the middle burner for 3-burner grills or the 2 middle burners for grills with 4 or more burners and keep the other 2 burners at medium high. For charcoal grills, bank one chimney starter-full of lit and ashed-over charcoal briquettes to one side of the grill. Set up a drip pan on the other side to avoid flare-ups. (The grill should be around 400 degrees F. Be sure to consult the grill manufacturer's guide for the best results.)
• Slice the zucchinis down the middle, lengthwise like a hotdog, so that you have 4 long, equal pieces of zucchini. Use a teaspoon to remove the flesh of the zucchini, being sure to leave a 1/4-inch border and to not pierce the bottom of the zucchini. Finely chop 1/2 cup of the zucchini flesh and discard or save the remainder for another use. Place the chopped zucchini flesh into a clean kitchen towel and wring out as much liquid as possible. Place the zucchini flesh into a medium liquid measuring cup or bowl.
• Flip the zucchini boats over so that the peel side is facing up and brush all four pieces with olive oil. Season the peel side with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper, then flip over and season the flesh side with another 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper.
• Add the Cheddar, Havarti, chives, cream, eggs, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper to the liquid measuring cup or bowl with the zucchini flesh. Whisk until well combined. Pour the mixture into the cavity of each zucchini boat.
• Using both hands to lift the zucchini carefully, place the filled boat in the middle of the grill over indirect heat (where the burner is turned off), cover, and cook until the eggs have puffed up slightly and are just set, 25 to 30 minutes. Use grilling tongs to remove the zucchini to a cutting board. Carefully wrap each zucchini boat in 1 of the bacon strips. Return to the grill over indirect heat and continue grilling, covered, until the eggs are completely set and the bacon is warmed and just crispy, 18 to 20 minutes.

COOL MELON AND HOT BACON

Steps:

• Cut the melon in half, scoop out the seeds and cut the flesh into wedges.
• Slice the fruit from the skin then cut the flesh into thick cubes. Keep the pieces generously sized.
• Remove the rinds from the bacon. Grill the bacon - or fry it in a non-stick pan - until crisp, then drain on kitchen paper. Cut or break the bacon into pieces about 2 cm in length. Pull the leaves from the parsley and roughly chop.
• Dissolve the honey in the lemon juice, season with a few grinds of black pepper and beat in the olive oil with a fork or small whisk.
• Add the bacon and parsley to the melon. Pour over the dressing and gently toss, trying not to break up the melon. Divide between two plates and serve.