Soothe Those Parched Throats With An Ice Cold Drink

In our idealized visions of summer, a time of hot sun and parched throats, there’s always a cold beverage close at hand.

It may be as simple as ice water or iced tea in a glass pitcher coated with dew, or as complex as a fruit-and-rum creation from the Caribbean.

In recent years, the supermarkets have been offering pre-mixed combinations of two or more fruit juices that are a great help in producing intriguing drinks with or without alcohol.

Of late, the role of tea has been expanded and it has become the base of a number of tasty drinks, including the apple iced tea that follows. (Tea lovers, be warned; there is no tea in the potent cocktail called “Long Island iced tea.”)

Apple Iced Tea

5 ounces apple juice

3 ounces canned iced tea without lemon

1 ounce fresh lemon juice , 3 ounces ice

1 lemon slice, for garnish

Combine the apple juice, tea and lemon juice in a 12-ounce glass. Stir, then add ice. Garnish the drink with the lemon slice.

Yield: 1 serving.

Bloody Fun

5 ounces Bloody Mary mix

2 ounces carrot juice

1/2 ounce orange juice

1 ounce vodka, optional

3 ounces ice

Celery salt

Celery stalk, for garnish

Combine the Bloody Mary mix, carrot juice and orange juice in a 12-ounce glass. Stir in the vodka, if using, then fill the glass with ice. Sprinkle the surface with celery salt and garnish the drink with the celery stalk.

Yield: 1 serving.

Two-Berry Nectar

From “Janet’s Juice Book,” by Janet Hazen (Chronicle Books).

1 cup chilled raspberries

1 cup stemmed, chilled strawberries (large ones cut in half)

2 chilled peaches, pitted and coarsely chopped

Place the raspberries, strawberries and peaches in a blender. Blend until smooth. Strain through a fine sieve and pour into glasses. Serve at once.

For a tasty dessert, pour the nectar into a plastic or stainless steel bowl, cover tightly and freeze until firm. Serve in small bowls.

Yield: 2 servings.

Honeydew Melon-Apricot-Nectarine Fuzz

2 cups peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped honeydew melon (about half of a medium melon)

2 apricots, pitted and coarsely chopped

2 nectarines, pitted and coarsely chopped (substitute peaches)

1 cup sparkling water or club soda

Place the honeydew melon, apricots and nectarines in a blender. Blend until smooth. Add the sparkling water and mix gently. Serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings.