Lemon Cucumber Lemonade Food

HOW TO MAKE CUCUMBER LEMONADE / LIMEADE

Steps:

• Prepare the simple syrup if you're using one.
• Juice the cucumber using one of these three methods (juicer, blender, or grater).
• Prepare the lime juice. If you plan on garnishing the glasses, you can optionally zest one (or more) of the limes first, then juice the limes either using a citrus press or by hand. If doing it by hand, it can be a good idea to roll it on the counter a few times to loosen the juice and even pop them in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. This will make it easier to squeeze out all the juice manually.You can zest all the citrus and save the zest in the freezer to use later within baked goods, compound butter, infused oil, cooking, etc.
• To prepare the mint, you can roughly chop it or chop it into ribbons, as I did. To do so, I rolled the leaves up and use scissors (though a knife would also work) to slice them into ribbons.You can slightly muddle the herbs to make them release their flavor even more.
• Add all the ingredients to a large jug/pitcher - the cucumber juice, citrus juice (I add the pulp as well), syrup, and mint, and stir well. Optionally top up with ice before serving! Feel free to add a few extra cucumber slices to the glass/ pitcher too.
• Ready to enjoy! To decorate glasses, dip the rim of each glass into some honey or another sticky syrup, then some coconut and lemon/lime zest. Add some cucumber lemonade to each glass and serve - enjoy!

CUCUMBER-MINT LEMONADE

Steps:

• Pulse 2 chopped English cucumbers, 2 cups fresh lemon juice (about 16 lemons), 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh mint and 1 cup sugar in a blender, stirring as needed, until combined. Puree until smooth, about 1 minute. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a pitcher, pressing the solids with the back of a spoon. Stir in 3 cups water. Serve over ice.

BETHY'S CUCUMBER BASIL LEMONADE

Steps:

• Combine 1 cup water and sugar together in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook and stir until sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and cool syrup to room temperature.
• Stir syrup, remaining water, lemon juice, cucumber, and basil together in a pitcher; chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

CUCUMBER LEMONADE

Steps:

• Thinly slice 1 cucumber and 1 lemon to measure 1/3 cup slices each; set both aside for garnish.
• Coarsely chop the remaining cucumber to yield about 3 cups; place in a medium bowl. Juice the remaining lemons to yield 1 cup juice. Add the juice to the bowl with the chopped cucumber. Add sugar and mint; stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is chilled and the sugar dissolves, about 30 minutes.
• Pour the cucumber mixture into a blender and blend until smooth, about 20 seconds. Add 1 cup water and blend again. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a pitcher; discard solids. Stir the remaining 3 cups water into the pitcher and garnish with the reserved cucumber and lemon slices. Serve over ice.

CUCUMBER LEMONADE

Steps:

• Juice the lemons. Peel the cucumber and remove the seeds with a spoon (if using an English cucumber, you can skip this step).
• Add the cucumber, sugar and 2 cups warm water to a blender and blend until smooth. Strain the liquid through fine mesh sieve into a pitcher, using a spatula to push the liquid through (discard the pulp; this takes a few minutes to complete).
• To the pitcher with the cucumber mixture, add 4 cups cold water and the fresh squeezed lemon juice. Add a few handfuls ice and serve. If desired, garnish with extra cucumber slices and lemon wedges.

REFRESHING CUCUMBER LEMONADE

Steps:

• Make a simple syrup by stirring the water and sugar together in a saucepan over medium heat; heat until just about to boil and the sugar has dissolved. Place in refrigerator 30 minutes, or until cool.
• Place the cucumber slices in a blender or food processor; blend until mashed into a pulp. Pour the cucumber pulp into a fine mesh strainer place over a bowl to catch the liquid; allow to sit until you have about 2/3 cup of liquid from the cucumber, about 15 minutes.
• Stir the simple syrup, cucumber liquid, and lemon juice together in a pitcher. Serve cold.