spiced watermelon wedges

i love good ideas. i love innovative solutions to problems i see in the world, big and small.

i love watching shows like shark tank, where people come up with the craziest concepts 

and make them become a reality. i also love finding, seeing and experiencing new things - 

and then wondering - why didn't i think of this??? am i the only one?

when i saw a recipe for a savory slice of watermelon, i stopped in my tracks.

either it was the worst idea ever, or one of those 'wait, why didn't i think of that???'

before you read any further - let me just tell you. it's definitely the latter. 

these were incredible. definitely different than biting into your classic slice of watermelon - 

 but so incredible refreshing - and savory!!! honestly, i thought these were genius.

so simple. such a crowd-pleaser. and immediately upgrades a super simple snack 

to be side-dish worthy. you have to try these. there are probably endless ways 

to vary this recipe, but i was pretty obsessed with this Mexican flavor profile. 

recipe via cooking light

serves 4

be sure to adjust this recipe to the size of your watermelon. i bought a smaller, 

personal size watermelon and had plenty of spice mix based on the below recipe.

ingredients

1 1/2 tablespoon grated lime rind

1/2 teaspoon chile powder

1/2 teaspoon ground coupon

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

4 watermelon wedges

or however many your heart desires

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

directions

1. preheat oven to 200 degrees

2. spread lime rind on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes until slightly dried.

3. combine dried rind, chile powder, cumin, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.

4. arrange watermelon wedges on a platter, drizzle with oil 

and sprinkle evenly with spice mixture and cilantro (if using).

note - the drizzle of olive oil was delicious but not necessary. 

i ate my first plate of wedges with olive oil, and then finished the rest of my watermelon 

(don't judge me) sans olive oil - just sprinkling the spice mix strait on. 

also - i skipped the cilantro, but kept it in the recipe above for those of you who love it!

dufur for the fourth!

i've been traveling to a small town in the middle of nowhere for almost 10 year now.

dufur is located roughly 2 hours outside of portland, and 30 minutes away from the dalles.

we try to make it at least twice every year - usually thanksgiving and the 4th of july.

this year we drove over from black butte, 

just in time for a long weekend and some 4th of july festivities.

our morning walk with coffee. this is probably 9am and it's already 90 degrees!

dillon cattle ranch

feasting

pool time

the 4th of july stash

the aftermath

the pyro team (antonious, raleigh, ben, and karlie)

my attempt at capturing fireworks on camera!