Make a Watermelon Hamish

INGREDIENTS

1 medium-large round seedless watermelon

Blueberries

Toothpicks

DIRECTIONS

1. Wash the watermelon under cool running water and pat dry.
2. Cut the ¼ inch of the bottom of the watermelon (light yellow spot) to allow it to sit flat on the counter.
3. Be careful not to cut too deep into the white part of the rind bottom must be a solid bowl to hold cut watermelon. Place the watermelon so that its stem will be the nose.
4. Find a point at the top of the watermelon about ¼ of the length of the watermelon. Using the dry erase marker, from that point, draw vertical lines half way down both sides of the watermelon. Then, from both points on the sides, draw horizontal lines straight to the back of the watermelon. If you are happy with your proportion, use your knife and cut the lines. Remove this whole portion and place to the side.
5. Using a large spoon, scoop out the fruit from the removed section and from the base. Chop this fruit into small cubes, drain and set aside.
6. Use a small paring knife make many small cuts to the edges of the head and body.These cuts should be short, small, irregular, angled, and curved. Small irregular cuts create the look of the hedgehog’s coarse coat.
7. Take the removed rind and cut a 1 ¾” strip from the flat end. Cut a triangle from the center of the strip to make the nose. See finished photo. To attach the nose, place toothpicks just above the stem spot to both side, and slide the base of the nose over the other end of the toothpicks, rind end down. You may need to secure with an additional toothpick. Put one in the tip of the nose and place a blueberry on the end.
8. Using the rest of the leftover rind, cut 4 equal sized rectangles for the feet. Trim the backs of the rectangles thinner than the front, and then make two cuts on the front of each piece to create a point making the shape of a paw. Attach with toothpicks rind end down to the bottom edges of the hedgehog as shown in photo.
9. To make the ears, draw two curved triangles that come to a point into the edges of the face area where desired. Carefully cut with the paring knife. Make sure an adult is assisting with knife skills. Using your finger, gently push out the cut shape from the inside until it’s only slightly protruding, being careful not to crack or break the rind.
10. For the eyes, simply place 2 toothpicks slightly above the nose and put a blueberry on each end.
11. Finally, fill the empty space of the hedgehog with the watermelon cubes. Place toothpicks in the cubes at the top to create the hedgehogs’ quills.