Watermelon Agua Fresca w/ Fresh Mint

 

Ingredients: seedless watermelon, fresh mint, water

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YUMMYY. I'm a huge fan of agua frescas - of any flavor. Whenever I go to markets or mexican restaurants, I always order them and had always wanted to make them. It was so easy! Some friends were over for dinner and left me with a huge watermelon that served as inspiration. You will need a blender and a fine mesh strainer, or sieve, and a spatula (although a spoon would work just as well).

I chopped up the watermelon in 2-inch cubes and dropped them straight into the blender. I also had some leftover fresh mint and I threw in about three leaves, roughly chopped. I wanted just a hint of mint essence in the drink and thought too much would just be... too much. Just hit the BLEND button and give it a whir. It will get stuck a few times, so I had to stop the blender and shake it up a bit (holding on to the lid), but it will be completely liquefied in no time. It's really important to say that you don't need to add any sugar! If you are using seasonal fruits, there is absolutely no need for added sweetness - plus it would be too sugary to drink and not as fresca.

I set up my sieve over a small bowl and poured the watermelon/mint puree through, pushing it down with the spatula. The key is to get out all the chunky bits, making it as liquid-y as possible - I ran it through the sieve one more time (so twice in total). Make sure not to throw away the watermelon chunks that are leftover in the sieve! Set this aside and freeze it and you've got yourself a nice watermelon and mint granita.

At this point you just have pure watermelon juice, so you need to add some chilled, filtered water. I kept adding to the mixture, one cup at a time, to taste. The watermelon juice itself is too sweet, so the water is really necessary. My watermelon yielded about 4 cups of watermelon juice and I ended up adding 2 cups of water - so a 2:1 juice to water ratio.

Serve chilled, over ice with some mint garnish or even some freshly cut watermelon! (or spiked, with some gin...)