With some simple ingredients, you can quench your thirst with satisfying classic summer beverages.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—Memorial Day was first celebrated back in 1868, a time when things like raising backyard chickens and growing your own food were as normal as going to the grocery store is today. Though times have changed, traditional, so-called "homesteading" projects are still popular among a lot of people nowadays. Homesteaders Kelly Coyne and Erik Knutzen, have just published Making It: Radical Home Ec for a Post-Consumer World (Rodale, 2011) detailing everything you need to know about living a back-to-the-land lifestyle, from planting a tray of microgreens on your patio or mixing up own mead (a drink made from fermented honey, and one of the oldest alcoholic drinks known to man).

While brewing a batch of mead may be too big a project for a three-day weekend, there are a lot of projects in the book that are really easy to tackle over your holiday. A good place to start is by making a few old-fashioned drink recipes that are super healthy and due for a comeback. So if you've got a backyard barbecue scheduled for the weekend, inject a little history into your celebration with a pot of agua fresca, sekanjabin, or switchel.

Aguas Frescas

Preparation: 10 min.
Makes 4 servings

Fresh and fruity and lightly sweet, a big glass of agua fresca is the ideal antidote for sultry summer weather, and the natural complement to a plateful of savory little tacos or a pupusa swimming in cheese and hot sauce.

Aguas frescas are sometimes flavored with herbs or spices; sometimes they are sweetened with sugar. There are endless flavor possibilities for a budding mixologist to explore—cucumber and lime with salt and chile, anyone? Or what about a watermelon and basil combo? You can get as fancy as you like, yet a single-ingredient agua fresca can be mind-blowingly delicious if the fruit is ripe and in season. Here's a basic fresca formula.

You'll Need:

3 cups peeled and chopped fruit. Classic choices are watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, pineapple, guava, cactus fruit, cucumber, and citrus. But more "northerly" fruits work well, too—peaches and blueberries and raspberries come to mind. The riper and sweeter the fruit, the better. This is an ideal use for slightly overripe fruit. Remember, if your fruit is flavorless, your drink will be, too. Sugar and lime juice will help not-so-great fruit, but they can only do so much.

Juice of 1 lime (optional) (Lime makes everything better.)

Sugar, if necessary, to taste. Simple syrup works best, because dry sugar will not want to dissolve in cold water. Agave nectar works well, too, but add it sparingly because it's quite sweet.

6 to 8 cups water

Extras: Handful of chopped mint, pinch of sea salt (really brings out melon flavors), pinch of powdered chile.

Putting It Together:

Put your fruit and any sugar, herbs, and spices in a blender along with 2 cups of the water. (Don't use all 6 to 8 cups of water at once, or the result will be a foamy mess. Use just enough water to puree the fruit.) Blend the fruit until smooth. If you don't have a blender, use a fork or a potato masher or similar tool to pulp the fruit as best as you can.

For a clear beverage, strain the pulp through a fine-mesh colander or cheesecloth, pressing to release all the juice. Otherwise, just toss the pulp into your serving pitcher and add the rest of the water. (The slightly chewy quality of an agua fresca is part of the experience.) Chill well and serve with or without ice.