In the quest for better hydration (and an attempt to up my fruit intake), I’ve been experimenting a lot with smoothies.

As has the rest of the world.  But for me, it’s been a little more complicated, because … I don’t like bananas.

I mean, I really do not like bananas.  But try finding a smoothie recipe these days that doesn’t call for one – or even two – frozen bananas!  Those smoothies have no a-peel for me.  I’ve experimented with throwing various fruits and juices together in smoothies, and while the results have been fair I’ve often thought I would just as soon eat a peach and some strawberries than drink them.

Then I saw an intriguing recipe for a watermelon/strawberry smoothie.  I didn’t have any strawberries, but I did have watermelon – lots of watermelon – so I chucked about two cups of watermelon chunks into the blender and pureed.

And sweet mother of pearl it was good!  It was the perfect degree of ripe sweetness, and a perfect slushee texture.

The next time I made a watermelon smoothie, the watermelon wasn’t quite as sweet.  Instead of adding sugar or agave nectar, as the watermelon/strawberry smoothie recipe had suggested, I decided to add a pinch of salt.  I sipped – almost.  On a whim I added a squeeze or two of lemon.  Brilliant!

It’s since become one of my favorite smoothies – sweet, slightly tangy, and completely refreshing on a hot summer day.

It’s nutritious, too – full of Vitamin C, beta-carotene, Vitmain B1 and B6, and more lycopene than a tomato.  Plus watermelon is an excellent source of magnesium and potassium.

Ingredients (For One Smoothie)

• Roughly two cups refrigerated seedless watermelon, cut in chunks.  I like freezing a couple of the watermelon chunks, to give the smoothie an icier, slushier texture.
• Pinch of salt
• Squeeze of lemon – maybe a teaspoon or two.  (You could also use lime, but I like the lemon better.)

Directions:

• Toss the watermelon into the blender and blend.  It will only take a few pulses.  Be careful not to overblend – you want a nice, slushy texture.
• Add just a pinch of salt or one shake of the saltshaker.
• Add a squeeze of lemon, stir, and taste. You may need to add another small squeeze, but no more than two squeezes.  The end result isn’t supposed to taste lemony – the lemon just adds a bit of tang, sparkle and brightness.  If, however, you add too much lemon – no worries!  You’ll have watermelon lemonade – still good, just a different flavor than the one we were going after.

I haven’t tried this – yet – but I suspect this would also be really good with a splash of alcohol.