Louisiana Watermelon Festival Recipe

Step I

Select melons with thick rinds. Peel off all green portion using only the white part of the rind. Dice. Soak in mild salt water overnight (1/2 cup canning salt to 1 gallon water.)

Step II

Drain. Rinse. Cover with water and add 2 tsp ginger. Cook approximately 12 minutes or until fork tender. Drain well.

Step III

For 2 quarts of raw, prepared rind, make the syrup of 5 cups sugar, 3 cups water and 1 sliced lemon. Boil 5 minutes and add rind to the boiling syrup. Cook until translucent (about 1 – 1 1/2 hours). If syrup appears too thick while cooking, add small amount of boiling water.

Step IV

Pour into sterilized jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Seal and process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

*Variation

Instead of cooking rinds in ginger water, cook in clear water. Then in making syrup add a cheesecloth bag containing 2 sticks of cinnamon and 1 tsp. whole cloves. (For a great flavor but darker color).

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