Sunset Lemonade
Summer has always been lemonade. Cool hose water, fresh grass, sea salt or mountain air. But, over time, it’s easy to forget summer as it was— those simple pockets of magic nostalgia that are waiting to be found again. So, in an effort to remember when summer was three glorious, free months with little to no schedule or responsibilities, I made lemonade.
Of course, the lemonade of my childhood was usually a pale yellow powder from a can and tap water left out to reach room temperature after moving from one kid project to another. But this is good old-fashioned lemonade: fresh-squeezed, made on a stovetop lemonade. I will note, though, that powdery lemonade still keeps the same magic as fresh-squeezed. The important thing is that you make lemonade.
what you need
for the lemonade
6 lemons
1½ cup sugar
8 cups water
optional garnishes
mint leaves
lemon slices
strawberries
violets
classic lemonade
Wash lemons, and roll them on your work surface under the palm of your hand. This helps to soften the lemons and will make them easier to juice.
Zest two lemons (about 7 tablespoons of zest)
Combine sugar, 2 cups of water, and zest in a pot over medium heat.
While the zest/sugar/water mixture is cooking, juice the lemons (about 1 ½ cups of lemon juice). Strain the juice into a pitcher.
Let simmer for 5 minutes, until sugar is dissolved (don’t let it boil). Remove from heat. Once cooled slightly, strain into the same pitcher.
Add in 6 cups of cold water to the pitcher. Chill in fridge or serve over ice.
strawberry lemonade
Fill a glass with lemonade. Add one ounce of strawberry simple syrup, stir & enjoy.
optional: garnish with mint leaves, a lemon slice or twist, a strawberry, or fresh violets.
strawberry simple syrup
1 carton of strawberries
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
Wash berries and cut into quarters. Place berries, water, and sugar in a pot over medium-high heat, bring to a gentle boil. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.
Once the syrup is a dark red, remove from heat and let cool slightly. Strain the syrup into a jar. Be careful not to smush the strawberries through the strainer! Chill in the fridge before serving. Homemade simple syrups will keep in the fridge for about 1-2 weeks.
huckleberry rhubarb lemonade
Fill a glass with lemonade. Add one ounce of Angel’s Fire huckleberry rhubarb syrup, stir & enjoy.
optional: garnish with mint leaves, a lemon slice or twist, or fresh violets. If they’re in season, you can plop some huckleberries into your glass, too!
note: you can make this classic lemonade your own with any syrups on hand— strawberry rhubarb, peach, raspberry, huckleberry— make it your own!
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