
Citrusy, crunchy, and spicy with cooling watermelon and cucumber.
Let's start with spicing up the pepitas.

Just a bit of ancho chili powder, cayenne pepper, salt, oil, and fresh lime juice.

Combine them all in a bowl and mix well.

The recipe calls for raw pepitas and toasting the spiced pepitas in the oven. Since the pepitas I have are already roasted and salted, I just gave them a little sauté in a non-stick skillet to bloom the spices and get a little more color on the seeds.
While the seeds are cooling let's attend to the melon.

In the bowl are the watermelon, cucumber, and red onion slices that had been chilling out in some ice water. To that, you are going to add the oil, ancho chili powder, cayenne pepper, salt, lime zest, and juice.

Sprinkle on the spiced pepitas and chopped mint right before serving.
Make it, you'll be happy you did
Mexican Watermelon Salad
Ingredients
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Directions
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- Let’s make the spiced pepitas first! Preheat the oven to 325°F with the rack placed in the middle position. In a medium bowl, combine the pepitas, olive oil, salt, paprika, cayenne, and lime juice. Mix well.
- Spread the seasoned pepitas in a single layer on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Toast the seeds for 12 to 15 minutes in the oven, stirring at the halfway point, until fragrant and crunchy.
- Cool to room temperature. Reserve ¼ cup for this recipe, and keep the rest in a sealed container for up to 1 week to munch on.
- While the pepitas are in the oven, soak the onions in a bowl of ice water for about 10 minutes to take the bite off ’em.
- In a large bowl, combine the watermelon, cucumber, drained onions, olive oil, chili powder, salt, cayenne pepper, lime zest, and lime juice. Toss to mix. Taste for seasoning, and adjust as necessary.
- Garnish with fresh mint leaves and toasted pepitas. Serve immediately!
Michelle Tam Ready or Not Cookbook
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And that's that!