Why not elevate your fruit salad and serve it from a watermelon bowl? Even better when that watermelon becomes a turtle, right?

It’s not as hard as it looks. Just start with a ripe watermelon.

Cut it in half and hallow it out.

My melon baller was packed so I used a metal tablespoon. It worked just fine!

Empty out both top and bottom.

Level out the pieces to fit together best you can taking about a one inch band off the top half. Save all rind scraps and set aside.

I used the side of a steak knife and held it like a pencil to scrape my design into the shell. You don’t have to carve deep- it’s more like etching.

See how there are rind shavings? It doesn’t take much effort to create your design.

Rinse off, pat dry and it sit aside.

Use your rind scraps to create 4 legs, a tail and neck. I typically use a chopstick to piece the turtle rind and body part then insert a wood toothpick. Those were packed so I cut Qtips and they worked perfectly.

I also like peppercorns for the eyes but they were packed so….Qtip eyes with a black dot in the middle. Just as cute!

All done! If the turtle isn’t traveling just fill the bowl half with fruit and sit the turtle on like a lid.

If traveling like mine was I just removed the little body parts and kept them in a baggy for safety then assembled.

You can refrigerate the shell and use it more than once too.

Nothing says summer like a watermelon. Have some fun with yours!!!

Happy summer- Kristen