Combine the season’s ripe fruits, flowers, herbs and spices to create agua fresca, a light summer refresher that’s popular throughout Mexico, Central America and Texas.
Fany Gerson’s Paletas: Authentic Recipes for Mexican Ice Pops, Shaved Ice, and Aguas Frescas, traces the drink back to the Aztecs. And while most recipes include small additions of simple syrup, summer’s ripe fruits may eliminate the need. Lime juice is a key ingredient, brightening the other floral and fruit flavors.
There are very few tricks to the creating the perfect agua fresca, but one is straining the ingredients in order to get a smooth result.
You can also customize and be as creative as you like:
Frozen: Freeze favorite flavors into paletas.
Boozy: Add 1 1/2 ounces tequila to 6 ounces agua fresca
Creative: Add summer’s fruits, vegetables and herbs from your garden to create your own “Signature House Agua”
Sweet: Add simple syrups.
Pineapple Rosemary Ginger
4 cups fresh cubed pineapple
4 cups water
Juice of 2 limes
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1/2-inch knob of fresh ginger
Add ingredients to blender and liquefy. Strain into glass pitcher or jar. Add simple syrup to taste. Refrigerate and serve, garnished with rosemary sprig.
Hibiscus Thyme
4 cups water
1 cup dried Hibiscus flowers
4 sprigs fresh thyme
Juice of 2 limes
In a medium saucepan over low heat, bring water, dried flowers, and thyme to a boil. Immediately remove from heat and allow to steep for 30 minutes. Strain into glass pitcher or jar. Add lime juice and simple syrup to taste. Refrigerate and serve, garnished with thyme sprig.
Guava Lemongrass Ginger
4 cups cubed guava
4 cups water
Juice of 2 limes
2 stalks lemongrass, outer leaves removed, roots trimmed
1/2-inch knob ginger
Add ingredients to blender and liquefy. Strain into glass pitcher or jar. Add simple syrup to taste. Refrigerate and serve, garnished with lemongrass and guava.
Peach Basil
4 cups fresh peach slices
4 cups water
Juice of 2 limes
12 basil leaves
Add ingredients to blender and liquefy. Strain into glass pitcher or jar. Add simple syrup to taste. Refrigerate and serve, garnished with sprig of basil and peach slice.
Cucumber Mango Mint
3 English cucumbers, diced
3 cups fresh mango slices
3 cups water
Juice of 2 limes
4 sprigs mint
Add ingredients to blender and liquefy. Strain into glass pitcher or jar. Add simple syrup to taste. Refrigerate and serve, garnished with sprig of mint, slices of cucumber and mango.
Simple Syrup (optional)
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine water and sugar. Allow to simmer until sugar is incorporated. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Store, under refrigeration, for up to 1 week.