Barley Free Chilled Cucumber Mint Lemonade
There is something genuinely refreshing about a homemade lemonade that goes beyond the basic, and this cucumber mint version delivers exactly that kind of upgrade. Fresh English cucumber is blended and strained into the pitcher, lending a cool, subtly vegetal sweetness that plays beautifully against bright lemon juice. A mint-infused maple syrup does the heavy lifting on sweetness, steeping just long enough to turn fragrant and a soft shade of green before it gets folded into the mix. Every single ingredient here is naturally grain-free, so there is no label-scanning or ingredient-swapping required — just clean, whole-food components from start to finish. The result is a chilled, pale green drink that looks stunning over ice with a lemon slice and a sprig of mint tucked in the glass. It is the kind of thing you make once and then find yourself craving all summer long.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the mint simple syrup
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup maple syrup
- ½ cup fresh mint leaves, loosely packed
For the lemonade
- 1 medium english cucumber (about 10 oz), peeled and roughly chopped
- ¾ cup fresh lemon juice (from about 4–5 lemons)
- 2 cups cold water
For serving
- 2 cups ice cubes
- 4 thin lemon slices (optional)
- 4 fresh mint sprigs (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Combine the 1/2 cup water and maple syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the maple syrup fully dissolves, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, add the mint leaves, and let steep for 10 minutes, until the syrup is fragrant and pale green. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a small bowl or measuring cup, pressing the leaves to extract as much liquid as possible; discard the solids. Let the syrup cool to room temperature.
- 2
Place the chopped cucumber in a blender with 1/2 cup of the cold water and blend on high until completely smooth, about 30 seconds. Strain the cucumber purée through the fine-mesh strainer into a large pitcher, pressing firmly with a spoon to extract all the juice; discard the pulp.
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