Grilling and smoking mangoes

And my new favorite cocktail addition

As part of my multifaceted professional career, I occasionally test cookware and other products for a national magazine.

The latest iteration was testing a cast iron Dutch oven for camping, resulting in standing outside in the Georgia summer heat, wedged between both a campfire and a charcoal grill, testing said oven in various conditions.

I had enough food for a week, and my pores have never been clearer.

I don’t talk a ton about the product-focused work I do here because, frankly, it’s not at the core of my food writing and there are plenty of places to find product reviews. But sometimes doing that work does give me some unexpected gifts: In this case, enough excess heat leftover on my grill and smoker to experiment with some new things.

The greatest success was mangoes: which I turned into one of my new favorite summer beverages.

My favorite part about this recipe is that it’s playful, and messy, and for me was more about the tactile experience of making than about worrying about if I got it “right.” Despite my lack of worry, it did turn out right, in that it’s delicious and incredibly easy.