15 Heroic Saves for a Mealy, Overripe Watermelon

Blend puréed watermelon with coconut water and a touch of stevia or other sweetener for a cooling tropical mocktail.

Double down on the lime and brighten up with mint to make frozen Mexican-style pops.

No one will ever guess this gorgeous sangria started out as a less-than-stellar watermelon.

Ice cream maker to the rescue! Don't have one? Make granita instead.

These colorful cocktails are made with, you guessed it, watermelon juice. The recipe notes tell you how to make juice by blending and straining chunks of watermelon.

Mealy watermelon takes a spin in your blender along with lemon juice, honey, and fresh mint. To really show that watermelon who's boss, hollow it out and using it as a serving bowl.

You can make cocktails with tequila or mocktails without. (I know what I'd do.)

Raspberries (fresh or frozen) give these watermelon pops extra-fruity color and flavor.

The perfect refreshment for a hot summer's day. Just take a sip and say aaaahhhhhhhhhhh.

"I had very ripe watermelon and several other ingredients in this recipe that needed to be used up. This was a great way to avoid throwing them away, and a pleasant surprise because we really enjoyed this gazpacho," home cook lutzflcat says.

Lemonade is the unofficial beverage of summer, and what could be a better variation than this naturally-pink, watermelon-garnished version? 

"Wonderful! I doubled the recipe to use up a watermelon that was past it's prime. The whole family has really loved this. I made it without using an ice cream maker. I just poured the mixture into a metal bowl and popped it into the freezer. Every couple of hours I whisked it until it was an even texture. When it reached soft-serve consistency, I put it into a covered container and stored it back in the freezer," Michelle Ann Anderson says.

The texture of your overripe watermelon won't matter once it's blended into this summery smoothie.

"Five stars all the way around, for simplicity and ease of preparation, for presentation, and for pure, refreshing deliciousness," reviewer naples34102 says.

Use up every last bit of that watermelon and turn it into sweet/tart pickles you'll want to eat with everything. For best results, use a watermelon variety with a thick rind.