Minty Watermelon Lemonade

I've mentioned here many times how the only saving grace to Texas summers is the produce.  At the moment, figs, peaches, blueberries, and watermelon are all simultaneously in season.  I'm doing my best not to gorge myself on too much fruit these days, though I can't say I've been successful lately.  Summer produce at its peak is just too damn good to resist!  This week the issue is the shear amount of fruit that I acquired at the market.  Without thinking, I bought a large watermelon, about 9 peaches, and a pound of figs.  I already had blueberries in my fridge so needless to say it's been a fruit party all week.  I suppose there are worse problems to have than a glut of ripe summer fruit.

The problem I've been dealing with this week is trying to use up all of the fruit before it goes bad. I absolutely hate having to throw out produce that is past its prime.  I think maybe it's because it makes me feel so wasteful. And also, it sort of makes me feel like I failed at adequately utilizing everything I had.  So, to avoid any garbage mishaps, I resorted to the best way to use up a ton of fruit: JUICE IT!

My juicer has been neglected the past couple of months because I got really tired of cleaning all of the parts. Reading that sentence makes it seem really silly and petty but I know I can't be the only person out there that hates cleaning a juicer.  I decided to show it a bit of love yesterday and make a really easy and delicious version of lemonade.  It's actually only lemonade in the sense that it has some lemon in it.  There's no added sugar, just wonderful summer watermelon.  Since I have a mint plant, and since the flavors pair so well together, I threw a handful of it in the juicer along with a bit of ginger for some zing.  The ginger is optional but I highly recommend it.  What's listed below makes enough for one ample serving so multiply to your heart's content.  If you are feeling like something a little more substantial, you can try the watermelon and mint lassi that I created for the Summer 2013 issue of Chickpea Magazine.  It can be found here.

Minty Watermelon Lemonade

2 heaping cups of cubed fresh watermelon
large handful of fresh mint
half of a small lemon, outer peel & pith removed
small knob of ginger (about one inch), peeled

Juice all of the ingredients, stir together, then serve!  Or, alternately, blend everything up in a blender with a bit of ice.  Makes enough for one serving.