A few weeks back, I took a back packing trip to Mt. Greylock in western MA. At the top of Mt. Greylock is Bascom Lodge, a wonderful full-service lodge and restaurant. What a great treat after a hot climb to sit down to a real meal, and not one made on a camp stove. One of the items on the menu was Cucumber Lemonade! It was delicious and inspired me to recreate it at home with fresh ingredients.
As luck would have it, my CSA farm share is producing A LOT of cucumbers, so with ingredients at hand, I found the perfect combination. Enjoy!
Cucumbers: It’s cool, sweet, and bland in taste; clears heat, quenches thirst, relieves irritability, promotes dieresis, and counteracts toxins.*
Lemon: It’s cool and sour in taste; helps to regenerate body fluids, harmonize the Stomach, regulate QI and quenches thirst.*
Honey: It’s neutral/warm and sweet. Nourish Yin, tonifies weakness, relieves spasm, harmonizes and strengthens the Spleen.*
- 6 cucumbers (peel if they have been waxed)
- 3-4 lemons
- Honey to taste – I used about 1/4 cup
- Water to taste
Juice the cucumbers and lemons. If you don’t own a juicer, you can blend in a blenders with water and strain through a cheesecloth to remove excess pulp. Add honey to desired sweetness. Add equal parts water (more or less depending on how intense of a flavor you want.)
Chill and sip on a hot summer day…if you have a front or back porch, that’s the ideal location to drink and enjoy!
If cucumbers aren’t for you, check out my Watermelon Mint Summer Cooler for a sweeter drink to help beat the summer heat.