Whether you're in the South, from the South, or never even been to the South, it's easy to appreciate this simple sorbet of pureed watermelon and strawberries from John Besh's cookbook, "My New Orleans."

The secret to knowing whether you've added enough sugar to your sorbet? According to Besh, you just need to float an egg in the puree before you freeze it.

He says that if you float a clean egg (in the shell) in the mixture, you can tell whether you need to add more sugar (if the egg sinks) or more juice or water (if the egg floats high on the mixture). Ideally, the egg will float just at the surface, showing about a nickel-size spot of shell.

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WATERMELON-STRAWBERRY SORBET

Start to finish: 10 minutes (plus freezing time)

Servings: 6

• 1 pint strawberries, hulled

• 1 cup diced, seeded watermelon

• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

• 1/2 cup sugar

In a blender, puree the strawberries, watermelon, lemon juice and sugar until smooth. Check that the puree has the correct amount of sugar. Add more sugar or juice if necessary (determine using method described above).

Transfer the puree to the canister of an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's instructions. Keep the sorbet in the freezer until ready to use.

• Nutrition information per 1/2 cup serving (values are rounded to the nearest whole number): 63 calories; 1 calories from fat; 0 g fat (0 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 18 g carbohydrate; 0 g protein; 1 g fiber; 1 mg sodium.

(Recipe from John Besh's "My New Orleans," Andrews McMeel, 2009)