Watermelon-Lime Agua Fresca and Peach-Raspberry Smoothie
Carrie H
We're all in this together, people. And by this, I mean the super crazy glut of fresh food that seems to ripen faster than we have time to eat, preserve, freeze or share it all. So this week at the Easton Farmers' Market, I've put together two cooling drinks perfect for this time of year: a Watermelon-Lime Agua Fresca and a Peach-Raspberry Smoothie. When you are using fresh seasonal, blah blah blah blah—wait! you already know this! That's why you're here. You don't need lots of extra flavor boosters. That's all I was trying to say.
Watermelon-Lime Agua Fresca
Two important notes to what's basically a simple recipe. First, the flavor of your watermelon is paramount for this agua fresca, since you're not using much sugar and the main ingredient is, of course, watermelon. Secondly, if you have a high-powered blender like a Vitamix, you want to make sure you blend this at a low speed and for a short period of time (30 seconds or so) just until it's combined. Otherwise you're going to have an explosion of foam—and we would rather it be a watermelon-lime fresca, not some kind of frothy drink.
Watermelon-Lime Agua Fresca
Ingredients
- 4 cups watermelon, chopped and seeded
- 2 1/2 cups coconut water (or regular water)
- Juice of half a lime
- 2 T. honey or agave nectar
- Fresh mint, for garnish
Instructions
Combine the watermelon, 1 1/2 cups coconut water, lime juice and liquid sweetener in a blender until smooth.
Pour the fresca through a sieve set over a pitcher, pressing whatever solids remain with the back of a spoon against the sieve.
Add the remaining 1 cup water and chill for at least an hour. Pour into four chilled glasses, garnish with mint and serve.
Peach-Raspberry Smoothie
Yield: 4 cups
This one couldn't be much simpler. You can certainly up the nutritional profile by adding different superfood powders (I think baobab would work well here) or flax meal to take it in a nutty direction, or a protein powder of some sort. But keep in mind that's going to switch the flavor profile, and what I'm aiming for here is the most unadulterated fruit experience possible. I don't even bother peeling the peaches, not because I'm lazy; the skins have their merits, too.
Ingredients
- 2 cups almond milk
- 3 baseball-sized peaches, sliced
- 1 cup raspberries
- 1/3 cup basil
- 2 cups ice
Combine all of the ingredients in the order listed and blend until it's completely smooth.