When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade and Chill! Best Homemade Lemonade Recipes

Fancy a fresh and sweet drink? Today we put the spotlight on how to make lemonade. The base is always the same: lemon juice, water, and sugar. Then it’s up to you to vary the pleasures. You can make homemade strawberry lemonade or even add lavender and honey to enhance your drink.

We bring you ten unique, delicious, refreshing homemade lemonade recipes, including the traditional homemade lemonade. Read on to find a recipe that’s just right for you to beat the summer heat.

Contents:

• Best Homemade Lemonade Recipe: Step-By-Step Guide
• How to Make Lemonade From Fresh Lemons?
• How to Make Strawberry Lemonade
• How to Make Lemonade With Lemon Juice
• How to Make Pink Lemonade
• How to Make Fresh Lemonade
• How to Make Lavender Lemonade
• How to Make Frozen Lemonade
• How to Make Fresh Squeezed Lemonade
• How to Make a Lemonade Slushie
• How to Make Lemonade Without Sugar (Sugar-Free)
• FAQs

Best Homemade Lemonade Recipe: Step-By-Step Guide

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Lemonade made from real lemon juice is a delicious and refreshing drink. In addition, lemon juice is the best companion for summer days, thanks to its health benefits.

The proportions vary because it all depends on how you like your lemonade and what type of lemon you use. If you choose a Meyer lemon that is sweeter, you’ll need to use less sugar. The second factor is the season because, as we know, lemons from the beginning are sourer than at the end of the season.

Ingredients:

• 1 lemon;
• 1 lime;
• 1 grapefruit;
• 2 tbsp. agave syrup;
• sparkling water.

Preparation:

1. Cut 2 slices of lemon and lime. Squeeze the remaining lemons and grapefruit.
2. Mix the juices with the agave syrup and a third of a liter of sparkling water.
3. Serve well chilled.

How to Make Lemonade From Fresh Lemons?

Ingredients (for about 10 liters of lemonade):

• 10 liters of water
• 2 lemons;
• 800 grams of sugar.

Preparation:

1. Boil the water with the sugar and the sliced lemons.
2. From the first broth, turn off the gas; otherwise, the lemonade may be bitter.
3. When the liquid has cooled, put ½ tsp. a small piece of real yeast.
4. Bottle it (by filtering) and wait 2 days in a cool place before drinking it.

How to Make Strawberry Lemonade

Strawberry lemonade doesn’t get much better than this. It only takes 4 ingredients to make and is ready in minutes. And, you’ll be sitting back in your chair with a fresh glass to enjoy the summer days.

Ingredients:

• 2 sprigs of mint;
• 100g strawberries;
• 1 organic lemon;
• 750 ml fruit kefir.

Preparation:

1. Wash the mint leaves, strawberries, and lemon.
2. Hull the strawberries and cut them into slices.
3. Next, cut the lemon into slices.
4. Marinate lemon, strawberries, and mint in kefir for half a day in a cool place.
5. Once cooled down, take out and serve.

How to Make Lemonade With Lemon Juice

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of sugar;
• 1 cup of water;
• 1 cup lemon juice;
• 2-3 cups of water to dilute the lemonade;
• lemon slices;
• ice cubes.

Preparation:

1. In a saucepan, pour the sugar and the water, heat until the sugar dissolves completely, stirring and remove from the heat.
2. While the syrup is on the heat, squeeze the lemon juice; you will probably need between 5-6, depending on how juicy your lemons are.
3. Pour the lemon juice and syrup into a pitcher.
4. Add between 2-3 cups of cold water; add more water if you prefer your lemonade more diluted but take into account that we will add ice cubes.
5. If you find your lemonade is too sweet, add lemon juice directly to the pitcher.
6. Refrigerate for 30-40 minutes.
7. Serve with ice cubes and slices of lemon.

How to Make Pink Lemonade

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Get creative, and do not hesitate to replace lemon juice with grapefruit juice, as in this recipe. The result is a beautiful pink lemonade that is as nice to look at as it is to drink.

Ingredients:

• 4 pink grapefruits;
• 1 to 2 tbsp. cane sugar syrup;
• 1 bottle of sparkling water.

Preparation:

1. Squeeze the grapefruits. Pour the juice into a carafe with the cane sugar syrup.
2. Add sparkling water and ice cubes if necessary.
3. Serve immediately.

How to Make Fresh Lemonade

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Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup (190 ml) sugar;
• 1 cup (250 ml) water (for the syrup);
• 1 cup (250 ml) lemon juice (5 or 6 lemons, depending on their size);
• 2 and a half cups (625 ml) of cold water.

Preparation:

1. First, we make a syrup simply by pouring the sugar and the first cup of water into a small saucepan over low heat. Remove from the heat when the sugar is completely dissolved.
2. Squeeze your lemons to obtain 250 ml of fresh juice during this time.
3. Finally, pour the syrup and lemon juice into a large pitcher. Then add 2.5 cups (625 ml) of fresh water to dilute.
4. Add a couple of lemon slices to the pitcher to accent the taste and for the look.

How to Make Lavender Lemonade

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Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup sugar;
• 1/4 cup water;
• 1/2 teaspoon dried lavender flowers;
• juice of 5 lemons;
• juice of 1 lime;
• 1 L of carbonated water;
• lemon slices;
• sprigs of lavender.

Preparation:

1. Mix the sugar, water, and dried lavender flowers in a saucepan.
2. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes or until liquid is syrupy.
3. Leave the syrup to cool, then strain it through a fine sieve (discard the lavender).
4. In a pitcher, combine lemon, lime juice, carbonated water, and lavender syrup.
5. Serve the lemonade in 4 tall glasses filled with ice cubes. Garnish with lemon slices and sprigs of lavender.

How to Make Frozen Lemonade

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All you need to make frozen lemonade is a blender and four ingredients, including lemon juice, vanilla ice cream, sugar, and water. Chilling the lemonade mixture beforehand will help dissolve the sugar better and will also keep the smoothie thick. Using cold (iced) water and a blender to dissolve the sugar quickly also works well.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed;
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar;
• 1/3 cup cold water (ice);
• 3 cups vanilla ice cream.

Preparation:

1. Cool the water with ice cubes for several minutes.
2. Put the lemon juice, sugar and 1/3 cup COLD water (no ice) in a blender. Mix until the sugar dissolves.
3. Add ice cream to the blender. Mix until combined. Divide into 3 cups.
4. Serve immediately. Enjoy with a spoon or straw.

How to Make Fresh Squeezed Lemonade

This version requires only the carefully squeezed juice from the lemons. It is necessary to make sure that no seeds fall into it since they can give bitterness to the drink.

Ingredients:

• 5-6 lemons, which is about 650-800 g;
• 250 ml of purified water;
• 1.5-2 liters of sparkling water;
• 250 g of sugar.

Preparation:

1. Mix purified water with sugar and heat to a boil until the syrup becomes completely transparent.
2. Set the syrup to cool to room temperature.
3. Lightly wash lemons (no special care is needed since the peel will not be used).
4. Squeeze out the juice. You can use a dedicated juicer.
5. Mix lemon juice with cooled sugar syrup. The result is a concentrate that can be stored in the refrigerator in a container with a lid for up to 5-7 days.
6. At any time, dilute it with soda water and get a wonderful homemade lemonade.

How to Make a Lemonade Slushie

Ingredients:

• 6 lemons;
• zest of a lemon;
• 6 tablespoons brown sugar;
• 800 ml ice cubes;
• 500 ml cold water.

Preparation:

1. Squeeze the lemons, reserving the resulting juice. You should also grate one of the lemons and add the zest to the juice, but try to grate only the yellow part as the white part will add bitterness to the end result.
2. Mix the lemon juice and zest in a bowl with the brown sugar and water. Stir both of these well until you can see that the sugar is completely dissolved. You can make sugar-free lemon slush using other sweeteners if you want healthier slush.
3. Once the mixture of lemon juice and sugar is ready, add ice cubes and put all the ingredients in the blender. This will result in a smoother, lump-free liquid with smaller ice cubes. Of course, you can always pass the resulting liquid through a sieve to ensure that all lumps have been removed. This way, the drink will have a better texture.
4. Once the mixture is ready, put it in the freezer. Cover it tightly, so it doesn’t spill and pick up flavors or aromas from other frozen foods. Try placing it on an empty freezer shelf, so it freezes faster.
5. Every half hour, remove the container, stir the slush and thus prevent it from turning into a block of ice. Once it’s frozen to your liking, you can permanently remove it from the freezer.
6. Before serving the lemon slush, be sure to stir it one last time so that the pieces of ice don’t stick together for a better texture, and voila! Then, all that remains is to serve!
7. Finally, serve in different glasses or cups. If you want to improve the presentation of the slush, you can decorate it with pieces of lemon zest or mint, which always give a special touch to any drink. Enjoy a very refreshing, tasty, and healthy drink!

How to Make Lemonade Without Sugar (Sugar-Free)

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Ingredients:

• 4 lemons;
• 1 liter of water;
• ice cubes;
• 4 tablespoons honey or agave syrup (optional);
• ginger powder (optional).

Preparation:

1. Take one of the lemons, roll it on a flat surface while squeezing it a little and do the same with the rest. Rolling the lemons and squeezing them carefully is a method that makes it easier to squeeze them later.
2. Then, cut each fruit in half and squeeze them using a juicer, either manual or electric. When the container fills with the juice from the lemons, pour it into a large pitcher or jar to make lemonade without added sugar.
3. This way, you would have already prepared the most natural and basic lemonade. However, if natural lemon juice tastes too much for you, then compensate with honey or agave syrup, as these contain natural sugars. Suppose you can find the most natural honey or agave syrup possible. In that case, you’ll be adding some natural sweetness to the recipe. It will be healthier than any refined sugar or sweeteners that are generally added to many commercial lemonades.
4. If you don’t want to add refined sugar to your lemonade recipe, you may give it a sweet but natural twist. Add 4 tablespoons of honey or agave syrup and stir the mixture to combine well.
5. Once the honey or syrup is well mixed, you may add a little powdered ginger to the syrup. Now, stir the mixture again. So now that you have come with a lemonade without added sugar or refined sweeteners, but with more flavor and more refreshing ginger accents. Don’t overdo it with the amount of ginger, as it can sting if used in excess.
6. To complete this sugar-free lemonade recipe, add cold water to the pitcher for an instantly refreshing light lemonade or lemonade.

FAQs

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What’s the origin of the Lemonade?

The Egyptians were among the first to enjoy a sweet and tangy drink that is now popular around the world. In 500 A.D. they mixed lemon juice with sugar for this refreshing beverage we call “lemonade.”

When was Lemonade introduced in the US?

The first known lemonade stand was introduced by a young entrepreneur named Edward Bok, who set them up in Brooklyn Streetcars during the 1870s. News media outlets began reporting on these stands as early as 1879, and it quickly spread throughout New York City’s transit system before becoming popular nationwide!

What is a Spiked Lemonade?

Spiked Lemonade is made with fresh lemon juice. You can also add rum or vodka for that extra boost of flavor. This makes it a delicious and refreshing “adult” version of the lemonade.

A Spiked Lemonade is a sweet cocktail made with fresh lemon juice and spiked with rum or vodka for a refreshing alcoholic adult beverage.

Water, sugar, and lemon are generally all you need to prepare a good lemonade. With a little imagination, however, you can vary the recipes to add a twist to the drink!

With a few fruits, a touch of honey, a beautiful color or an unusual aroma, it doesn’t take much to revisit lemonade. And good news, one of the oldest drinks in the world is still thirst-quenching, refreshing and ultra-gourmet.

Strawberry, elderberry, cherry, watermelon, grapefruit, honey, and lavender; the choice of ingredients is endless, and you can improvise with these to come up with the perfect summer drink. You can make all these different types of lemonades in the comfort of your home.

We are sure our cool homemade lemonade recipes will inspire you to come up with more interesting combinations of lemon and fruits to make a wonderful pitcher of heat-beating lemonade for your friends, family, and kids!

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