Cucumber-Honeydew Cooler

Nobody said you have to eat all your fruits and veggies. Our Cucumber-Honeydew Cooler is a fresh, summery cocktail that incorporates—you guessed it—cucumber and honeydew. It's easy to make and completely out of the box if your go-to warm-weather beverages are rosé and margaritas. Now, we know what you're thinking: "Cucumber and honeydew sounds like the beginning of a delicious . . . salad." We get it. But you'll actually use these unexpected ingredients to make a sweetened, fresh juice. First, you'll chop the cucumber and cube the melon into a blender, along with a cup of water and a little sugar. Then you'll fine-strain the puree, saving the juice and tossing the solids. Combine your cucumber-honeydew juice with a floral gin (we like Hendrick's) and serve over ice. (Hint: Stemless wine glasses with cucumber ribbons looped inside make an especially pretty presentation.) We think you'll agree that a Cucumber-Honeydew Cooler makes the perfect sipper for late-afternoon porch swinging. Cheers, y'all.

Cucumber-Honeydew Cooler
Photo: Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall
Yield:
8 serves

Ingredients

  • 4 cups chopped English cucumbers (2 medium-size cucumbers)

  • 1 1/2 cups cubed honeydew melon (about 1 lb.)

  • 1 cup water

  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

  • 1 cup (8 oz.) floral gin (such as Hendrick's)

  • Garnish: English cucumber slices

Directions

  1. Process about chopped English cucumbers, cubed honeydew melon, water, and granulated sugar in a blender until smooth, 2 to 3 minutes.

  2. Working in batches, pour puree through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl; discard solids. Pour cucumber-honeydew juice into a 2- to 3-qt. pitcher. Stir in floral gin.

  3. Slice 1 English cucumber very thinly with a mandoline. Loop cucumber ribbons around insides of 8 small stemless wineglasses. Fill with ice; pour cocktail evenly into glasses.

Chef's Notes

For a mocktail, substitute floral gin for 1 (12-oz.) can of lime-flavored seltzer water.

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