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Middle Eastern Limonana

By April White

4.8

(9)

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Photo by Gentl & Hyers

This bright-green combination of lemon and mint is found on tables throughout the Middle East. But the name limonana is borrowed from, of all places, a 1990s advertising stunt. To showcase the power of bus ads, an Israeli advertising firm created a fake product called Limonana—a mash-up of the similar Arabic and Hebrew words for lemon and mint. Soon, everyone was asking for the thirst-quencher by name.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    4–6 servings

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 9 lemons)
3 cups loosely packed mint leaves (from about 20 stems)
1 cup granulated sugar
4 cups still water
Ice cubes

Preparation

  1. In a blender, combine the lemon juice, mint, sugar, and 1/2 cup of the water and blend until fully liquid. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, reserving the liquid and discarding the solids. In a pitcher, stir together the mint mixture and the remaining 3 1/2 cups water. Serve over ice cubes.

Image may contain: Fruit, Plant, Citrus Fruit, Food, and Lemon
From Lemonade with Zest: 40 Thirst-Quenching Recipes © 2018 by April White. Published by Chronicle Books. Buy the full book from Amazon.
TagsCold DrinkBeveragesMiddle EasternLemonCitrusFruitMintHerbs & SpicesNonalcoholicQuickEasy5 Ingredients or FewerBlenderCookbooks

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