My favorite summertime drink is lemonade and we go through a ton of it every Summer. We drink it straight on hot summer days and give it a spike for weekend evenings. (Here’s the standard recipe for both non-spiked and spiked lemonade versions.)
But the holiday weekend kickoff to Summer needs something a bit more than a basic (albeit cool and refreshing) lemonade. With strawberries in abundance and deliciously sweet and bursting with flavor right now, I decided lemonade with a strawberry twist would fit perfectly with the red, white & blue color scheme for Memorial Day! It can also be spiked, if desired.
Strawberry Lemonade
Strawberry Lemonade (adapted from bhg.com) Total Time Required: 1 hour + 15 minutes, Prep Time: 15 minutes, Chill Time: 1 hour
Makes: 8 8-ounce servings
Ingredients:
- 1-1/2 cups sugar, divided
- 1 quart fresh strawberries, divided
- 1 tablespoon finely shredded lemon peel
- 1 cup lemon juice from 4 to 5 lemons
- vodka (optional)
Fresh lemon juice makes the best lemonade!
Directions:
In a small saucepan set over over medium heat, combine 1 cup of the sugar with 1 cup of water. Bring the mixture to a boil, cooking and stirring until the sugar dissolves. Boil for 1 minute, then remove the pot of simple syrup from the stove and set it aside to cool.
Make the simple syrup.
Wash, hull & quarter enough strawberries to fill 2 cups. In a blender or using a wand blender in a large container with high sides, combine 3 cups of water, the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, and the quartered strawberries. Process the strawberry mixture until smooth.
Combine the strawberries with the sugar.
Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the strawberry mixture into a 2-quart pitcher. Add the cooled simple syrup, lemon peel, and lemon juice to the pitcher, stirring to combine. Cover the lemonade and chill for at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours.
Add the lemon juice and zest, then chill.
Serve the strawberry lemonade over ice with whole strawberries as garnish.
Serve over ice and garnish with whole strawberries.
For Spiked Strawberry Lemonade, add 2 cups of vodka to the pitcher or 1/4 cup vodka to each serving.
Straight or spiked, this hits the spot!
Remembering our fallen veterans this Memorial Day weekend. ~Linda
Strawberry Lemonade (adapted from bhg.com) Total Time Required: 1 hour + 15 mins, Prep Time: 15 minutes, Chill Time: 1 hour, Makes: 8 8-ounce servings
Ingredients:
- 1-1/2 cups sugar, divided
- 1 quart fresh strawberries, divided
- 1 tablespoon finely shredded lemon peel
- 1 cup lemon juice from 4 to 5 lemons
- vodka (optional)
Directions:
In a small saucepan set over over medium heat, combine 1 cup of the sugar with 1 cup of water. Bring the mixture to a boil, cooking and stirring until the sugar dissolves. Boil for 1 minute, then remove the pot of simple syrup from the stove and set it aside to cool.
Wash, hull & quarter enough strawberries to fill 2 cups. In a blender or using a wand blender in a large container with high sides, combine 3 cups of water, the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, and the quartered strawberries. Process the strawberry mixture until smooth. Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the strawberry mixture into a 2-quart pitcher. Add the cooled simple syrup, lemon peel, and lemon juice to the pitcher, stirring to combine. Cover the lemonade and chill for at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours. Serve the strawberry lemonade over ice with whole strawberries as garnish.
For Spiked Strawberry Lemonade, add 2 cups of vodka to the pitcher or 1/4 cup vodka to each serving.