Strawberry Lemonade Recipe

Simple Strawberry Lemonade

1. 1

   Prepare strawberry puree

   Rinse and hull the strawberries. Reserve 4-6 whole small strawberries for garnish if desired. Place the remaining strawberries in a blender with 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar and 2 tablespoons of cold water. Blend until smooth, about 20–30 seconds. If you prefer a seed-free lemonade, strain the puree through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing with a spatula to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids.

2. 2

   Make quick simple syrup

   In a small saucepan combine 1 cup water (from ingredients) and the remaining 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar plus the 3 tbs listed? (See note) — instead, to be precise: combine 1 cup water and 3 tablespoons granulated sugar. Heat over medium, stirring until sugar dissolves and the mixture just starts to simmer, about 3–4 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. (This yields a lightly sweetened syrup; adjust sugar in final drink to taste.)

3. 3

   Juice the lemons

   Roll lemons on the countertop to loosen juices and cut in half. Juice until you have 1 cup fresh lemon juice (about 4–6 medium lemons). Strain seeds if necessary.

4. 4

   Combine lemonade

   In a large pitcher (about 2–2.5 quart), combine the strained strawberry puree (about 1 to 1-1/4 cups), the 1 cup fresh lemon juice, the cooled simple syrup, and 3 cups cold water. Stir thoroughly to combine. Taste and adjust: if it's too strong, add the remaining 1 cup water; if not sweet enough, add up to 1–2 tablespoons more simple syrup or granulated sugar, dissolving well. If you didn't make a separate simple syrup and used the blender sugar method, adjust sweetness similarly.

5. 5

   Chill and serve

   Refrigerate the assembled lemonade for at least 30 minutes to let flavors meld. To serve, fill glasses with ice cubes (about 1/3–1/2 cup ice per glass), pour lemonade over ice, garnish with reserved strawberry halves, lemon slices, and mint leaves if using. For a sugared rim: wet glass rim with a lemon wedge and dip into coarse sugar before filling.

6. 6

   Notes and scaling

   This recipe yields a lightly sweetened strawberry lemonade. Adjust sugar and water to taste. For a party (double batch), multiply all ingredients by 2. For a sparkling version, replace up to 2 cups of cold water with chilled sparkling water and add just before serving to retain fizz.