Lebanese Cucumber Soup Recipe

This is a chilled soup which is popular in the Middle East. Adding fresh mint helps with the cooling effect. Live, natural yogurt is a great ingredient because it's very good for the digestion.

Cold Cucumber Soup Starter

Ingredients -

1 cucumber
225 ml natural yogurt
1 clove garlic
2 spring onions
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Pinch of cumin
75 ml sour cream
1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped
Mint sprigs to garnish
Salt and black pepper

Preparation:

Reserving a bit of the cucumber for garnish, peel the rest and chop or finely grate it over a bowl to catch any juice. Trim the onions and finely chop the bulbs and about 8 cm of the green stalk. Crush and finely chop the garlic. Mix the cucumber and its liquid with everything else. Stir until smooth. Season to taste. Chill the soup mixture until you need it then divide between 4 soup bowls. Garnish with thin slices of cucumber and sprigs of mint.

Serves 4