Cucumber Mint Sparkle Food

CUCUMBER-MINT WATER

Steps:

• Blend the cucumbers, sugar, lemon juice, mint, salt and 4 cups cold water in a blender until as smooth as possible (a fair amount of solids will remain). (If all the ingredients do not fit in your blender, use half the water to puree, transfer the puree to a larger container, then stir in the remaining water.) Refrigerate to chill, at least 1 hour.
• Before serving, strain the cucumber-mint water through a fine strainer. Use the bottom of a ladle or wooden spoon to help push the liquid through the mesh. Discard the solids. Serve over ice. Add gin or vodka to taste if using.

MINT CUCUMBER SOUP

Steps:

• Peel and cut 1 1/2 of the cucumbers into large chunks (set the remaining unpeeled 1/2 cucumber aside).
• Combine the cucumber chunks in a food processor with the yogurt, sour cream, olive oil, mint, salt, garlic and plenty of white pepper. Pulse, scraping down the sides, until completely smooth.
• Ladle the mixture into cold bowls or refrigerate until serving. Chop the remaining cucumber into fine dice and divide among the bowls. Swirl some sour cream into each bowl, drizzle with a bit of olive oil and scatter with mint and almonds.

CUCUMBER-MINT MARGARITA

Steps:

• Rub the rim of a rocks glass with 1 lime wedge, then dip the rim in coarse salt.
• Muddle the mint and cucumber in a cocktail shaker with a muddler or the handle of a wooden spoon until the cucumber is broken up and the mint is bruised, 5 to 6 times. Add the Cointreau, tequila and lime juice. Fill the shaker three-quarters of the way with ice and shake well. Pour into the prepared glass and garnish with the remaining lime wedge.

CUCUMBER MINT SORBET

Steps:

• Using a vegetable peeler, peel the cucumbers and remove the seeds with a teaspoon. Roughly chop the cucumbers and add them to a blender with all of the remaining ingredients. Puree until well blended and smooth. Add the mixture into an ice cream machine and run for 15 minutes. Pour the sorbet into a silver bowl, and freeze, stirring every 30 minutes until frozen, about 2 hours. Serve immediately or transfer to a container and store in the freezer.

CUCUMBER-MINT GIMLETS

Steps:

• Peel, seed and chop 6 English cucumbers. Puree, then strain through a sieve into a bowl, pressing to extract the juice. Chill. Combine 1/3 cup lemon juice, 8 sprigs mint and 1/4 cup sugar in a pitcher; muddle with a wooden spoon. Stir in 2 cups gin, the cucumber juice and some cucumber and lemon slices. Divide among 6 to 8 ice-filled glasses.

APPLE, ELDERFLOWER & MINT SPARKLE

Steps:

• For a grown-up non-alcoholic drink, mix elderflower cordial with cloudy apple juice. Add a small handful mint leaves, stir well, then pour into a chilled flask.
• At the picnic, pour half glasses of the juice and top up with sparkling water.