Kitchen

[wismiss]

I was at a grocery store today and they had lemon drop melons. Have you ever had one? What do they taste like? What is their texture like? How do you tell if they are ripe?

Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

[tkins]

Hi wissmiss,

You had me at Lemon Drop Melon. This is first time I have heard of it. It probably has not been available here, because with the name I definitely would have gotten one, but I will now be on the look out for it. Like you, I was curious, so I did a search, but there is not a whole lot of information out there about them. Here is what I found cobbled from various websites.

Starts out like a Honey Dew ends with a tart citrus snap

Did you know that a melon stops ripening as soon as it's picked? And since we strive for the freshest in melons while also understanding that different people like different levels of ripeness, their answer is perfect. "Kandy Lemondrop melons are deemed ripe when they are picked, though there are varying degrees of ripeness. If you like your melon a little more ripe, look for webbing that is darker brown with no green between the sutures. If you like your melon a little less ripe, look for one that's still a little green between the sutures."

Hope this helps.

Oh and if you see a melon called a Hami Melon, I highly recommend them, they are crisp like a watermelon, but taste similar to a cantaloupe, absolutely yummy, juicy and crisp . It is our favorite melon, but we don't get them very often, when we do they don't last more than a day.

Enjoy.

tkins

[Kachina624]

If you want a really zingy melon (watermelon), put it in an ice chest with dry ice. The melon absorbs the carbon dioxide and it becomes effervescent. Discovered this by accident when camping.

[wismiss]

tkins and kachina624: Thank you for your posts. I have never heard of anyone putting a melon in dry ice. It would taste like watermelon soda, I would imagine. Yummy.

takins: Thank you so much for all the searches and information. Now I recall (since you had it in your information) that in smaller letters they had Kandy Lemondrop melon. This was at Aldi's. I almost never shop there but a friend had recommended a chicken salad with pecans and cranberries that is available at Aldi's so I went in to purchase the chicken salad. I just might go back the next time I am in town and purchase one to see if we like it.

Thanks for the heads up about the Hami melon. I have never seen one, but that doesn't mean that eventually we might not have them available at some point in time. They sound delicious.

Have you ever had a Sensation melon?

"crowned was the new Sensation, very sweet, but not cloying, complex with haunting hints of hazelnut, amaretto and cinnamon" "Sensation is a whole new category of melon, a one of a kind fruit that will amaze you with its taste, texture, sweetness and aroma"

are just a couple of comments about them. We have a melon farmer about 2 hours away and we drive up there every year to get a sensation melon, they are so good.

So, hopefully I will taste a Hami melon some day and you will taste a Sensation and maybe we can put one of them in dry ice and have a refreshing melon drink.

[tkins]

On 8/17/2014 kachina624 said: If you want a really zingy melon (watermelon), put it in an ice chest with dry ice. The melon absorbs the carbon dioxide and it becomes effervescent. Discovered this by accident when camping.

OOOOh Do tell. That sounds really good and refreshing. I will have to get a small watermelon and try it since I ordered some goodies that will be accompanied by dry ice. A few questions, do you just place it around the melon, how much dry ice and how long does it stay zingy after you cut it open. Gotta love those happy accidents

tkins

[tkins]

On 8/17/2014 kachina624 said: If you want a really zingy melon (watermelon), put it in an ice chest with dry ice. The melon absorbs the carbon dioxide and it becomes effervescent. Discovered this by accident when camping.

OOOOH Do tell, that sounds wonderful and refreshing. I will have to get a small watermelon and try it, since I have some goodies coming that will be accompanied by dry ice. A few questions, do you need a lot of dry ice, any special method of dry ice placement and how long does it stay zingy after you cut it open? Gotta love those happy accidents

Thank you for sharing.

tkins

[tkins]

On 8/17/2014 wismiss said:

tkins and kachina624: Thank you for your posts. I have never heard of anyone putting a melon in dry ice. It would taste like watermelon soda, I would imagine. Yummy.

takins: Thank you so much for all the searches and information. Now I recall (since you had it in your information) that in smaller letters they had Kandy Lemondrop melon. This was at Aldi's. I almost never shop there but a friend had recommended a chicken salad with pecans and cranberries that is available at Aldi's so I went in to purchase the chicken salad. I just might go back the next time I am in town and purchase one to see if we like it.

Thanks for the heads up about the Hami melon. I have never seen one, but that doesn't mean that eventually we might not have them available at some point in time. They sound delicious.

Have you ever had a Sensation melon?

"crowned was the new Sensation, very sweet, but not cloying, complex with haunting hints of hazelnut, amaretto and cinnamon" "Sensation is a whole new category of melon, a one of a kind fruit that will amaze you with its taste, texture, sweetness and aroma"

are just a couple of comments about them. We have a melon farmer about 2 hours away and we drive up there every year to get a sensation melon, they are so good.

So, hopefully I will taste a Hami melon some day and you will taste a Sensation and maybe we can put one of them in dry ice and have a refreshing melon drink.

You are very welcome and thank you for asking about it. I have never seen or had a Sensation Melon, but will look for it as well, it sounds really yummy. Hopefully we will both have luck finding and trying them and if we do, we can report back on how they are.

tkins

[Jackielee]

Just had some Lemondrop melon in our fruit salad for brunch after church today. I bought in at our local grocery store on Thursday here in Southern California. It is delicious. Looks like a honeydew inside and tastes like it too with a bit of a lemony or tangy taste. Very, very good. Funny, I posted on facebook on Thursday about buying one and everyone was curious about it. One of my friends had just seen something about it on Martha Stewart and I guess that it was said on there that you cannot buy them in the eastern part of the country. Anyway, I bought it at Vons and my daughter and I can't get enough of it.

[HonnyBrown]

On 8/17/2014 kachina624 said: If you want a really zingy melon (watermelon), put it in an ice chest with dry ice. The melon absorbs the carbon dioxide and it becomes effervescent. Discovered this by accident when camping.

Great tip!! I especially love and appreciate how you discovered it!

[Kachina624]

On 8/17/2014 tkins said:

On 8/17/2014 kachina624 said: If you want a really zingy melon (watermelon), put it in an ice chest with dry ice. The melon absorbs the carbon dioxide and it becomes effervescent. Discovered this by accident when camping.

OOOOH Do tell, that sounds wonderful and refreshing. I will have to get a small watermelon and try it, since I have some goodies coming that will be accompanied by dry ice. A few questions, do you need a lot of dry ice, any special method of dry ice placement and how long does it stay zingy after you cut it open? Gotta love those happy accidents

Thank you for sharing.

tkins

I think the ice was just loose in the chest with the melon. Doubt it would kept long because the carbon dioxide disperses like when you leave a coke uncovered.