Watermelon Fruit Basket

Ingredients 

• 1 medium watermelon
• 1 medium green apple, cored and diced
• 1 medium red apple, cored and diced
• 1 medium muskmelon peeled, seeded and diced
• 1 medium papaya peeled, seeded and diced
• 5-6 red grapes + to garnish 
• Malta oranges to garnish
• 1 medium pineapple, halved and flesh scooped out with a scooper
• 2 medium kiwis
• Yellow bananas to serve

Method

1. To prepare basket, take a watermelon and cut off a thin slice from the lower end so that watermelon stands and doesn’t topple. Keep it standing on the worktop, make small slits on either side of the stem and cut it down to half the melon from both sides. Then cut it horizontally and separate the slice from either side. What will remain is a thick handle.
2. With a scooper, scoop out some red flesh balls from the handle on either side and put them in a bowl. Remove the remaining flesh with a sharp knife to give the handle a proper shape.
3. Scoop out the flesh from the lower half of the watermelon with the scooper to make a hollow. Now we have the melon cut in the shape of a basket.
4. With a sharp knife, make zigzag cuts or triangles on the rim of both sides of the basket. Similarly make zigzag cuts on either side of the handle. Trim the stem.
5. Put green apple, red apple, muskmelon, papaya cubes, red grapes and a few watermelon balls in the basket.
6. Quarter one orange and slice each quarter into thin crescents.
7. Line all around the top edge of the basket with orange slices. Break one slice in middle and place in centre over the fruits and place a red grape over it.
8. Place the filled basket in the centre of a pineapple shaped tray or any other tray. Fix a flowery hairband on the outer side of the handle and secure it with toothpicks.
9. Make zigzag cuts in the centre of the remaining orange and gently separate the top and bottom halves. Place a red grape in centre of both halves and secure it with a toothpick and place them on the side of the basket orange over the tray.
10. In two hollowed halves of a pineapple, add remaining muskmelon, remaining papaya, watermelon scoops and orange slices. Peel and slice the kiwi and place the slices over the fruits in the hollowed out pineapple halves.
11. Cut remaining kiwi into half, peel the outer skin, cut slices, and place them in the basket.
12. Place 2 whole yellow bananas on either side of the basket. Serve immediately.