Watermelon Limeade

This past weekend, on Saturday morning, the day before our annual street picnic, Scarlett decided that she wanted to have a lemonade stand during the gathering. Normally I would have hemmed and hawed about orchestrating such a project but since we bought a lemonade stand at the school’s spring fundraising event, I figured I had no leg to stand on complaining about it. Instead I decided to enlist the help of a few of her friends. I thought how time consuming can it it be until Scarlett dropped this bomb on me: “I want to make all our own lemonade.”

Honestly, the kid is a glutton for punishment and clearly needs to live with Martha Stewart or some other crafty gamer. I know our slick lovely images suggest that Ceri and I are some domestic whizzes but, let’s face it, those are just pretty pictures and our lives are as real as they get. Believe me, the shit hits our fans more times than we care to admit to. But it doesn’t stop us from trying to live the dream so when my daughter looked at me all sparkly eyed as I lounged on the couch in a pair of drawstring pants that I’ve had since college (the ones with the hole in the ass) clutching my morning coffee, I had to say, “Great idea. Let’s do it!” So that’s how I wound up spending my Sunday juicing lemons.

I’m not sure if it was the fact I was off the couch or if it was because I was out of the pants (those pants have always been a bit of a downer) but I found myself getting really into the project. I figured if we were going to have three kids selling the stuff that we should offer some variety. I encouraged each to pick a different flavor and then made two fruit purees and pulled fresh mint from our garden. I also found labels the kids could decorate and affix to their mason jar full of their special blend. The final result was what I would consider a pretty couture lemonade stand offering blueberry, strawberry and fresh mint varieties. The one thing I didn’t have the kids do was serve my special summer refresher.

This watermelon limeade is basically just pureed watermelon, and it’s the most refreshing thing next to being dropped into a clear glacial lake on a sweltering day. It also gets a hit of tang from the fresh lime. I like to keep a pitcher of it around all summer because it’s basically just a pure fruit juice. And it tastes and looks way better than a box you cork with a straw. Since you control the sweetness (frankly, ripe summer watermelon barely needs any sugar), you know it as healthy as it is thirst quenching.

The day after our successful lemonade stand (we pulled in $37 for the Terry Fox Foundation) I made us a pitcher of my watermelon-lime cooler. As Scarlett sat gulping it back after school, I saw her suddenly sit up a little straighter. “Mom!” she said. “Yes.” I knew what was coming. “Why don’t we sell this next?!” I feel another project brewing.

If you’re entertaining and your guest list includes both kids and parents, serve this delicious drink garnished with some fresh chunks of watermelon and a lime for the kids but add a shot of vodka per glass to make a refreshing cocktail for parents.