Cantaloupe

If there's one thing hot dry weather is good for, it's creating amazing melons! Water is important for size, but all that sun creates incredible flavor and sweetness. The melons are surprisingly sweet this year! 

Storage:
Cantaloupe will keep best in the fridge. However, if your melon has a green color to the background, leave it out at room temperature for two to four days. Note: even our melons that have a slight green tinge have incredibly sweet melon flavor this season. Store cut cantaloupe in a tightly sealed container in the fridge.

Long-term Storage
Freezing : Like most melons, cantaloupe can be scooped out in balls or chunks and placed directly in the freezer. Melons can also be frozen in syrup, or as a finished product (sorbets, and granitas). When thawing it is best to eat the melon when it is still slightly frozen, or blend it into a smoothie.

Preparation
Melon is most often eaten fresh, but can also be made into soups, drinks, and frozen desserts.
Wash the cantaloupe before cutting as you would any fruit because bacteria can reside in the netted rind.

Serving Suggestions:
Scoop the flesh out of the cantaloupe rind and use shell as a bowl to hold a melon or fruit salad.
Try tossing chunks of melon with thinly sliced mint and a few squeezes of lime or lemon juice for a unique flavor combination. 

About Cantaloupe

History
Originally grown in Asia and India, cantaloupe probably made its way to the Roman world around the time of Christ. It was first noted in North America by Christopher Columbus. Cantaloupe is thought to be named after Cantaloupe, a former papal garden near Rome. Cantaloupe is part of the same gourd family as squash and cucumber.

Nutrition
Cantaloupe is a fat-free, cholesterol-free food that is very low in sodium. It offers large amounts of vitamins A and C, is a very good source of Potassium, and a good source of folate, fiber, vitamin B1, B2, B6, K, and magnesium.