Not only does my family love the fruits and veggies of summer, we also like playing with our food! Melon Monsters and Salad Stuffed Cyclops provide the perfect opportunity to combine arts and craft with an afternoon snack that’s healthy, delicious and takes advantage of seasonal food finds.
Melon Monsters by Jodie Fitz
Watermelon
Fresh cherries
1 golden delicious apple
Blueberries
Toothpicks
Craft Sticks
You will need a triangular slice of watermelon per monster that is cut approximately 1 1 1/2 inches thick. Remove the rind. Cut the bottom to create a flat edge. Then cut the right and left side slightly to create your monster shape. Insert a craft stick in the bottom so that it looks like a melon pop.
Wash the blueberries and cherries. Pit the cherries and slice them. You will need 1 cherry and 1 blueberry per monster. Using a toothpick, simply carve a circle the size of your cherry in the watermelon to insert the cherry slice as a Cyclops eye. Add the blueberry into the center. Cut another slice of cherry in half to create a semi-circle as the mouth. Using the toothpick again, carve a shape to fit the mouth of the monster and insert the piece of cherry. Discard the toothpick; it’s only a carving utensil in this recipe.
Cut a slice of apple and cut the apple into strips. Place the strips into a snap and seal lunch-sized or snack sized bag, add cinnamon and shake. Insert two strips into the top of the watermelon to serve as horns.
Salad Stuffed Cyclops by Jodie Fitz
5 mini bell peppers
1 _ cups chopped salad*
2 tablespoons light ranch dressing
Black olives, sliced
1 fresh beet
Wash the beet. Removed the ends as if you were cutting an onion. Peel the beet with a potato peeler. Shred approximately 1 tablespoon per Cyclops.
Wash the peppers; remove the ends and the seeds. Make 1 _ cups of chopped salad using your favorite salad ingredients and toss it with the dressing and stuff each of the peppers.
Cut a whole in the pepper to place a slice of olive as the Cyclops eye. Cut a sliced olive in half to create a mouth. Slice a triangular shape in the pepper to insert the mouth. Stand your salad stuffed Cyclops on a tray and top with approximately a tablespoon of pinched, shredded beet for silly hair.
You can join Jodie monthly and get more recipes through the online Price Chopper Kids Cooking Club that is free and can be found at www.pricechopper.com under the program sign up section of the site. Jodie also visits local communities with Price Chopper for fun programs and events. To learn more about her, visit www.jodiefitz.com.