Drinkable Fruit

I buy watermelon for my family and we eat about half of it and then the rest sort of leaks in the refrigerator until I throw it out and buy a new one. That changed when I made this refreshing fruit juice recipe, inspired by Agua de Sandia (Watermelon Water), a traditional Mexican beverage. If watermelon's not in season, try mango, cantaloupe, strawberries, grapes — whatever you like, as long as you use about 2 cups of fruit.

Hands-On Time: 10 minutes
Ready In: 1 hour, 10 minutes

2 cups diced watermelon
3 cups water
Sugar

1. Purée 2 the fruit and 2 cups water in a blender, then pour into a pitcher. Stir in another cup of water and, if the fruit isn't sweet enough on its own, add sugar to taste (up to 1/8 cup), stirring until the sugar is completely dissolved. Chill at least an hour, pour over ice, and serve.

Extra Fun
To make your drink extra special, use extendable straws ($10, DIY Drinking Strawz, thinkgeek.com).