RECIPE: Watermelon Smoothies

Super addictive. I could drink these damn things all. day. long.

When I was a teen, I started drinking Diet Cokes with lime. I had one in the morning in place of breakfast. I had one with lunch. I had about two after school, and then two more with dinner. That’s a six-pack of Diet Cokes every day, and I shudder to think about it now. Man, my stomach lining was impenetrable.

It took getting pregnant with my first kid for me to actually care about what I was pouring down my gullet. I tried to make myself like plain water, but it was just so … plain. I did stop drinking Diet Coke though. When you can’t pronounce even half the ingredients in a beverage, you know you’ve got no business putting that beverage inside your body.

So, I started experimenting with fruit-infused water and fresh fruit smoothies. Even though the ingredients are few and the method for making them simple, there are some hacks you must follow in order to enjoy the results.

One is to start with a very cold watermelon. Only a cold watermelon is going to yield the right flavor and the right mouth-feel.

Feel free to customize your smoothie with coconut milk or cashew milk if you want a creamier experience.

You can also add ice to your smoothie, but a word of caution here. Unless your ice cubes are made from bottled or filtered water, they’re likely going to impart an unpleasant flavor. I’ve seen too many people go to the effort of making watermelon smoothies only to have them ruined by tap water ice cubes.

Watermelon smoothies are best served right away, but they do keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 72 hours.

If you want your smoothie to taste sweeter, you can add dates, fresh pineapple, even honey. Just make sure you’re not masking the delicious flavor of the mint and watermelon.

Ingredients:

4 cups cold watermelon, chopped
3 tbsp lime juice (squeezed fresh)
1/2 banana
8 mint leaves

Directions:

Put all the ingredients into a blender and mix well. Serve immediately with a mint garnish or even a watermelon wedge on the side of the glass.

You see? Really easy. Now stop to consider what you might pay for something like this at a Smoothie King.

I promise you, this watermelon smoothie will be a thousand times better, healthier, and less expensive to to make. When I want to “cut” the smoothie with something, I will sometimes pour a quarter glass of a delicious sparkling water like Topo Chico into the mix. Just remember that good ingredients makes for good food.

Buon appetito!