It’s super easy, customizable, and there’s no oven involved.

The season of sweltering suffering arrived in Japan a while ago and everyone is still looking for new ways to beat the heat. Whether you’re hitting the beach or nibbling on some Pocky on the Rocks, there’s one classic summer food that never seems to go out of style: watermelon.

Watermelon by itself is delicious, but after eating it again and again perhaps you’re looking to change things up a bit. In that case, we decided to take a cue from an idea trending on TikTok and turn our watermelon into waterpizza (pizzamelon? The jury’s still out on that one). It’s a super easy snack to make, is aesthetically pleasing, and requires no actual cooking–just cutting.

The most important step in this whole process: Go to your local market and grab the biggest boss melon that you can find. Then, slice it in half and cut a cross-section approximately 2 centimeters (0.79 inches) in width from the thickest part of one of the halves. The other ingredients you’ll want to snatch up are (clockwise from top right): cream cheese, ricotta cheese, and honey for the “sauce,” as well as strawberries, blackberries, and kiwi for the toppings. However, just as with real pizza, feel free to customize your toppings in whatever way you want.

First, every pizza needs some kind of sauce, so we’ll start by making our special waterpizza version. Blend roughly equal parts of the cream cheese and ricotta cheese and add honey to taste. This should transform it into a smooth paste that can be spread over the surface of the watermelon. The finished product should be divinely tempting on its own but try to resist the urge to lick the bowl.

Next, spread the mixture over the red portion of the melon’s cross-section, generously applying it as if you were a snowman smearing on sunscreen in the hottest place on earth. It’s OK to leave a tiny bit of room around the edges, however, so that you can still see the green “crust.” Finally, cut the melon into eight equal pieces as you would a whole pizza and decorate the top with sliced fruit pieces.

▼ Do I spy some some kiwi pepperoni? Blackberry olives?

Now it’s time to enjoy your low-hassle and refreshing treat! According to our Japanese-language reporter who tested it out, the slight sourness of the “sauce” balanced out the sweetness of the fruit very well. If you want it to be sweeter, just add more honey. If you want it to be sourer, a sprinkle of lemon juice should do the trick.

The one caution she has is that, as might be expected, the watermelon starts losing water after a while. Make sure you place your waterpizza on a large plate to avoid any accidental leakage (or just gobble it all up immediately to avoid that problem altogether).

We hope the waterpizza provides you with an extra boost of energy in this heat, but if you’re still looking for more novel ways to eat the classic summertime fruit, perhaps cooking up some wonderful watermelon gazpacho soup with the leftover half of the melon would make a complementary side dish.

Reference: TikTok
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