Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 ripe honeydew melon, sliced, seeds removed and peeled
• 6 slices tofu ham, vegan cold cut or tempeh bacon
• 2-3 tablespoons bell pepper nut cream
• lettuce and grapes as garnish

for the sweet bell pepper nut cream:

• 1 large red bell pepper, stem cut away, de-seeded and chopped
• 1/2 cup ground almonds, hazelnuts, cashews or walnuts
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 tablespoon ginger syrup
• 1/2 inch knob ginger, peeled
• pinch salt
• 1 tablespoon oil

Directions:

to make the sweet pepper nut cream:

1. Heat the oil in a small frying pan.
2. Add the chopped bell pepper and saute until soft.
3. Place the cooked bell pepper pieces in a small bowl.
4. Add the ginger syrup, cayenne pepper, knob of peeled ginger and ginger powder and puree to a smooth consistency.
5. It will be slightly liquid at this stage.
6. Add the ground nuts and puree again. At this stage it will become thicker.
7. Season to taste with a pinch of salt and any additional seasons you may want.
8. Cool until ready to use.

to prepare the salad:

1. Arrange some lettuce or lollo rosso around the edge of each plate.
2. Slice the melon about 1/3 inch thick
3. Slice the peel off and remove the seeds from the center thus making a hollow area for the nut cream.
4. Slice the tofu ham in small half rounds- usually 3 rounds are enough for each center area.
5. Line the center hollow with the tofu halves.
6. Fill the center area with the bell pepper nut cream (about 2 teaspoons per melon center) and optionally top with 1/2 a grape.

Notes:

This tastes particularly nice with the honeydew melon, or other sweet greenish yellow melons. I do not recommend it for a cantaloupe as it has such a different flavor. I would make a different nut cream, with ginger, lemon and nuts.

Serving Size: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 ripe honeydew melon
• 1&1/2 cups fava beans, shelled cooked and skinned
• 1/2 cup sweet spicy Thai sauce
• 4 ounces soy cheese, grated

Directions:

If using fresh favas, remove them from the pods, cooked them, for 5-10 minutes then into cold water.
When the favas are cooled, remove the outer skin from the bean. If using frozen favas, thaw, cook for short time then into cold water and remove the skins.
Set the prepared favas aside in a bowl until ready to make the salads.

to make the honeydew slices:
Slice the honeydew, remove the seeds and trim the outer skin away.
If you prefer balls, then cut the melon in half ad using a melon baller cut the balls.

Grate the soy cheese, and pour the Thai hot and sweet sauce into a serving carafe.

Arrange the melon slices or balls wit the fava on individual serving plates.
Sprinkle with soy cheese and dot some sauce around here and there (on the plate).
The carafe with the sauce can be brought to te tale for individuals to help themselves.

Notes:

As an alternative to fava beans, edamame or limas can be used.
I make my own sweet hot sauce using sambal ulek, rice vinegar and a bit of male syrup.
Sometimes, I use a vegan “store-bought” sauce or, you can also make your own from this nice recipe.

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/sweet-chili-thai-sauce/Detail.aspx

Serving Size: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 ripe cantaloupe or orange colored melon (ca. 2 pounds)
• 1/2 Tbs granulated sugar or more, depending on melon’s sweetness
• juice of 1/2 lime
• 1/2 cup light, white wine, such as sauvignon blanc
• a few sprigs of fresh mint, or lime as garnish

Directions:

1. Cut the melon in quarters and scoop out the seeds.
2. Carefully trim the skin away from the flesh with a sharp knife.
3. Cut the flesh in pieces and place i a blender.
4. Puree the melon with the sugar, lime juice, and wine.
5. Taste, and adjust as needed.
6. Se in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
7. You will need to once again put it in the blender before serving, as the liquid separates.
8. Serve garnished with lime and mint or a wedge of melon.

Serving Size: 2

Ingredients:

• 1 medium ripe melon, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 4 tbs. fresh mint, chopped
• juice from one medium lime
• cayenne powder,
• salt

Directions:

1. Make sure your melon is really ripe.
2. Cut it into bite sized pieces.
3. Squeeze the juice from a medium lime. (it’s important that it is a lime not a lemon).
4. Place in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
5. Just before serving, cut the leaves of fresh mint in very fine pieces and add to the melon and mix well.
6. Sprinkle a dash of salt and a light dash of cayenne pepper and mix well.
7. Serve as a salad on a bed of lettuce, or as a refreshing desert.

Notes:
Inspired by
http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/salad/fruit_mintymelon.html

Serving Size: 2

Ingredients:

• 4-5 stalks fresh rhubarb
• 1/2 cantaloupe
• 2 tbs. sugar

for the dressing

• 2 tbs. sweet desert wine
• 1 tbs. ginger syrup

Directions:

1. I chose the youngest bright pink rhubarb for this recipe.
2. Wash and slice the rhubarb and slice in small bite sized pieces, Perhaps on a slant, as that would present nicely.
3. Place in a small sauce pan.
4. Cover with water and add the sugar.
5. Cook or poach the rhubarb for about 3 minutes.
6. Stay and watch, have a fork ready to test if it has begun to get soft.
7. It is not so easy to cook rhubarb.
8. It goes from hard crunchy pieces to totally string mousse in minutes.
9. When it has just begun to get soft, remove it from the heat and plunge it into cold water to stop it from further cooking.
10. You can then place it in the refrigerator (still in the cold water bath) until needed.
11. Shortly before serving, using a melon baller, make melon balls from the cantaloupe.
12. Mix the sweet wine and ginger syrup together to make the sauce.
13. Arrange the melon balls and the rhubarb on a plate or in a bowl and drizzle the sauce over.
14. I garnished this with the mint leaves, but did not eat them with the salad as the flavor of the mint rather over powered the flavors of the ginger, rhubarb and melon.

Note:

Here is a useful tip, just in case your rhubarb did overcook and fell appart.
You can put it in the blender add 1 tablespon of sugar and puree. It makes a very lovely coulis (sauce). You can then use is on pancakes or waffels or as a soup with a bit of soy yogurt floating in the middle.

• 1/2 melon
• 6 tabs. port or madera wine
• 1 vegetable bouillon cube
• water

Directions:

• Using a melon baller, cut small ball shapes out form 1/2 of a melon.
• Pour 6 tablespoons of madera or port wine over the balls and allow them to soak for 1 hour.
• Make the vegetable bouillon according to directions.
• Serve the bouillon in a bowl, place the melon balls with a bit of the wine.
• Dress with a few freshly cut water cress leaves.