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Diabolo menthe
Mint syrup and lemonade
Diabolo menthe: bright green mint syrup topped with fizzy French lemonade, the after-school café treat
Ask anyone who grew up in France about diabolo menthe and they will remember sitting on a café terrace after school, or on holiday in Brittany or the Vendée, with a tall glass of startling green fizz and a straw. It is simply sirop de menthe, the sweet mint syrup sold in every French supermarket, topped up with limonade, which in France means a clear, lightly sweet, lemony fizzy drink. Grenadine makes a diabolo grenadine, lemon syrup a diabolo citron. It tastes cool, minty and sweet, like a liquid mint sweet, with a sharp sparkle. The common mistake is pouring the syrup on top of the lemonade: it sinks in a dense layer and you drink plain fizz followed by pure syrup. Put the syrup in the glass first and pour the lemonade down the side so it mixes as it rises. It is ready when the glass is an even mint-green from bottom to top and still fizzing hard. Café ratio is about one part syrup to seven parts lemonade. Chef's tip: for a homemade syrup, steep a big handful of fresh mint in hot sugar syrup for 30 minutes and strain; it will be pale gold-green rather than emerald, and tastes fresher.
- Total time
- 3 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 2
Ingredients
For the drink
- 1 ¾ cups French-style clear sparkling lemonade, chilledor lemon-lime soda
To serve
- 6 ice cubes (optional)
- 2 fresh mint sprigs (optional)
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Method
0/3 doneStep 1: Put 6 ice cubes in 2 tall glasses and pour 30 ml of ¼ cup mint syrup (sirop de menthe) into each.
1 minStep 2: Tilt each glass and slowly pour in the 1 ¾ cups French-style clear sparkling lemonade, chilled down the side so it lifts and mixes the syrup as it fills, until the drink is evenly green and fizzing.
1 minStep 3: Stir once gently, add a sprig of 2 fresh mint sprigs and a straw, and serve straight away.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 130 kcal
- Protein
- 0 g
- Carbs
- 33 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Fibre
- 0 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does diabolo menthe take?
- About 3 minutes in total.
- How many people does it serve?
- 2 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
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