9 Smart Ways to Use a Melon Baller That Don't Involve Melon
Seed Tomatoes
Seeded tomatoes make better-tasting, thicker sauces, salads, and salsas. Make quick work of prepping them by using a melon baller. Not only is it easier to handle than a knife, it eliminates the risk of nicks and cuts, so you can even let the kids help.
Stuff Cupcakes
Your guests will love these yellow cupcakes with a surprise strawberry filling. Use a melon baller to scoop out perfectly round holes in the center of each cupcake.
Shape Truffles
A melon baller is your secret weapon for coaxing chocolate into perfectly rotund truffles. Start with our favorite Spiced Pear Truffles or our Easy Dark Chocolate Truffles.
Core Pears and Apples
Break out your trusty melon baller to expertly scoop out pear and apple cores. The hollowed-out fruit makes for a beautiful presentation, like in our easy four-ingredient recipe for Poached Pears with Dark Chocolate, and in Cinnamon-Roasted Apples with Pecans and Ice Cream—or when you're filling the hollowed-out fruit, like in our Pomegranate with Pears and Goat Cheese recipe.
Make Cucumber Balls
Cukes lend themselves well to the ball shape, too. They're the perfect garnish for a smoked salmon dish and a welcome addition to any gazpacho.
Hollow Out Vegetables
A melon baller works a treat when prepping vegetables for stuffing, try it with onions, squash, tomatoes, and baby potatoes.
Prep a Pineapple
You know those pesky brown "eyes" pineapples have after you peel them? A melon baller is the best tool to remove them. Don't miss the rest of our easy approach to cutting up a pineapple.
Make Mini Ice-Cream Scoops
Let's face it—tiny food is just cuter. Serve adorable mini scoops of our refreshing Mango Lime Sorbet or any ice cream you please.
Carve a Pumpkin
A melon baller is just one of the unexpected tools we rely on for creative pumpkin carving. Use it to cut spherical shapes out of your pumpkin shell next Halloween. The depressions will give your jack-o'-lantern a spooky glow when the light shines through them.
Don't let your melon baller languish in the utensil drawer! While summer is the season to scoop cantaloupe, honeydew, and watermelon for refreshing fruit salads and sorbet floats, you can use this handy little tool for so much more.
We've never been fans of single-use gadgets, arguing they simply take up precious kitchen space, but we make room for the melon baller. Its sharp edge and perfectly rounded scoop mean it's a versatile tool with applications beyond melon. Use it to prep other fruits and vegetables, hollow out vegetables ready for stuffing, form perfect chocolate truffles and create indentations for sweet fillings for cupcakes. Then when Halloween comes around, grab your melon baller for pumpkin carving. There really is so much this simple tool can do.