Sipping on ice-cold lemonade on a hot day is the epitome of summer in the south. Get your hands on a bag of fresh juicy lemons and create amazing easy homemade lemonade to enjoy all summer long.
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a dime a dozen
Few things beat a refreshing glass of lemonade to greet the unofficial first day of summer. I didn’t plan it out this time, it was sort of thrust upon me and I tried to make the most out of the lemons life handed me.
This week I was searching for a couple of lemons to roast with chicken (yum). I added a bag of lemons to my grocery list for good measure, expecting to use the extra 1 or 2 for salad or garnish for other meals.
To my surprise, the bag of lemons I requested and had delivered through Instacart contained TWELVE lemons!! I thought lemons came in small bags of 3-4?? I’ve apparently been out of the grocery shopping game for too long.
Nevertheless, I managed to use about 4 and was running out of ideas of how to use the remaining bowlful. Then the idea hit me: fresh lemonade! The perfect way to use ALL of the lemons without wasting any delicious citrus.
easy peasy lemon squeezy
When I think of freshly squeezed lemonade, my mind immediately goes to the state fair where endless booths offer extremely large cups filled to the brim with sugary lemony goodness.
I’m not sure what exactly goes into those lemonades that make them so desirable, but it’s so easy to recreate lemonade at home.
Homemade lemonade only requires 3 ingredients: lemons, sugar, and water. The sweetness of sugar and tartness of the lemon in one drink are an undeniably great combination.
how to: juice lemons
Begin by slicing roughly 8 lemons in half. It’s okay if the seeds don’t fall out, they should be contained in the juicing process.
A lot of recipes insist using an electric juicer to maximize your yield. I love using my juicer for larger citrus such as oranges or grapefruits. I’ve found that an inexpensive citrus juicer does just as good as an electric when it comes to lemons.
With the inside of the lemon facing down towards the bowl, squeeze each lemon half into a medium bowl or mason jar. The juicer will contain most (if not all) of the seeds and in no time you’ll have about a cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice!
Refrigerate your lemon juice in a mason jar or covered container.
If you love tart tastes you should definitely give this juice a sip. It puckered me up like no other!
how to: create a simple syrup
A simple syrup may sound intimidated and loaded with bad ingredients, but this one only contains water and sugar.
Heat one cup water and one and half cups sugar over medium high heat. The water doesn’t need to come up to a full boil, our goal is to dissolve the sugar.
As the water heats up, stir until the sugar dissolves and remove from heat. Allow the syrup to chill and refrigerate.
I couldn’t forego tasting this syrup I just created as a lover of all things sugar. It will look just like water, but let me assure you it is SO sweet.
how to: make homemade lemonade
Combine the lemon juice and simple syrup with 7 cups of water. If you’d like to serve it immediately, use cold water. Otherwise, you’ll want to refrigerate it and be patient a little while longer before diving in.
Enjoy over ice (with fresh lemon slices and a sprig of rosemary if you wanna get fancy) and embrace the summer heat.
Easy Homemade Lemonade
Ingredients
- 8-10 medium-sized lemons halved
- 8 cups water divided
- 1 ½ cup sugar
Instructions
- Juice the lemons and refrigerate the lemon juice until cold.
- Heat sugar and 1 cup water in a pot over medium-high heat, or until the sugar dissolves. Cool the simple syrup to room temperature and then refrigerate until cold.
- Combine lemon juice, simple syrup, and 7 cups of cold water. Stir and enjoy.
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What are your favorite ways to welcome in summer?? I’d love a good baseball game or trip to the beach to make it official. Share in the comments below!
A classic lemonade can never go wrong in summers 😉
I feel the same exact way! Thanks for the comment 😚
Love this! Definitely going to try. Maybe I’ll take a break from iced tea this summer and give fresh lemonade a try! Thanks 🤗
Tea is my other favorite!! I like to mix the tea and lemonade and it’s SO good!
You just can’t beat homemade lemonade 😊.
It’s so great in the summertime!!
Man, I love lemonade on a hot summer day, especially when it is ice cold and made with fresh lemon juice. I have needed to get a new juicer for a long time, and I love the hand-squeeze ones. So easy!
Yes the fresh lemon juice makes all the difference! Thanks for your comment 😊
I love this! It’s so simple and easy, but it’s perfect for the hot weather we have coming in this week! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
It’s been a hot week in NC so far and the lemonade has been a lifesaver 😊 hope you enjoy!
This is delicious! My daughters love making lemonade like this here in Australia and a similar bush lime version when we are in Vanuatu.
Yummmm a lime version sounds amazing!!
I love ice cold lemonade in the summer. There’s something so refreshing and revitalising about it.
It has to have magical properties or something, it works wonders for improving my mood 🙂
Thanks again for sharing your recipe! Can never go wrong with a bit of lemonade in the summer 🙂
Johnny | Johnny’s Traventures
https://johnnystraventures.com
The difficult part is not drinking ALL of it on a hot day. Thanks for your feedback!
Definitely one to have a go at in the hotter weather for us!
I love making homemade lemonade, but I have never made it with simple syrup. I usually just dump all the ingredients in at the same time. Yours sounds way better. Giving it a try.
I hope it turns out delicious! 🙂
Wow this was such an interesting read!
I’ll definitely be making some homemade lemonade this summer, thanks for sharing!
Blog of Sunshine <3
https://blogofsunshine.com/
Let me know how it turns out if you decide to make it soon 🙂
I’ll definitely be making some homemade lemonade this summer, thanks for sharing this simple recipe.
Blog of Sunshine <3
Thank YOU for your feedback!
Sounds easy and delicious.
Thanks for your comment!
Love this! I’ve always struggled with the lemonade being too sharp. I’ll definitely have to try this.
Please let me know how it turns out! 🙂
I loooooove lemonade 🤤 definitely gonna try to make this homemade version!
I hope it turns out great for you!
I love drinking lemonade. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Thank you for your comment! I loveee drinking it too
I love homemade lemonade!! I think I’m going to give this recipe a try!!😊
Yay let me know how it turns out!!
My kids will love this lemonade recipe! Thanks!
Awesome, I hope it turns out fantastic!
Such a classic. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for your feedback!
Vitamin c that tastes good! 🙂
Yum!! Thanks for your feedback!
I drink wayyyyy too much lemonade so of course I’ll be trying this recipe. haha Thanks for sharing!
Haha lemonade and sweet tea are staples in the south and I can’t keep away!
I love lemonade but I haven’t made one, never thought of actually making it myself but it’s something to try out. Your recipes are easy to follow
Thanks so much! If you decide to make it please let me know how it turns out!
This looks delicious, something refreshing to sip now its getting warmer! Thank you for sharing.
Thanks so much for your kind words!
Thanks for the reminder! I’ve been wanting to make this! It’s so refreshing and it’s getting really hot here in Toronto.
I believe it, it’s already too hot to go outside some days in NC!
My kids love lemonade! I’ll be making this soon. Thanks for the recipe!
I hope it turns out amazing! Perfect for a lemonade stand maybe?
Love this recipe! So simple yet so delicious! Since it’s so warm here in the UK at the moment I’ll definitely have to be trying this out!
Thank you! I hope the lemonade turns out amazing is nice and refreshing 🙂
This looks great! Perfect drink for hot summer days.
Iced lemonade and iced tea are my favorites! Thanks for your comment 🙂
This looks delicious and just what I need!❤
Please let me know how it turns out if you try it!!
Nice photos and post! So many good things start with the perfect glass of lemonade.
Thanks so much for your sweet comment!
Definitely I will try
I hope the lemonade turns out amazing!
Oh homemade lemonade is the best!! It’s the perfect summertime drink! Thanks so much for sharing!
Thank you for your kind words! I agree, I don’t need much more than lemonade and sweet tea in the summer 😉
Today was the perfect day for this recipe! Too bad I didn’t have lemons… I’ll hold onto this though, I love this post!
It’s hit or miss whether I have lemons too! I either have 0 or like 10 😂
This sounds absolutely delicious! Can’t wait to try and make it myself this summer!
Share your pics and thoughts if you decide to try it!
There are not many things tastier than this! My kiddos are very into lemonade this year too. Moreso than previous years. We’ll have to try a homemade version.
I can’t argue with that, I too am VERY into lemonade now 🙂
I have never tried making lemonade at home! I will need to try it!
This sounds really lovely, definitely perfect for the summer weather!
Thanks so much for your comment!
Homemade lemonade is so refreshing in the Summer! Your recipe sounds delicious x
https://www.femaleoriginal.com
I totally agree!! Thanks for the comment 🙂
I absolutely love everything that has to so with lemons.
My grandma taught me to soak the lemon slices into the sugar and then squeeze them altogether with my hands (with gloves) so they get blended.
That’s such a good tip! Thanks for sharing and for reading 🙂
Delicious, I will use this recipe next summer
Thanks for sharing
https://uncuaderno4cero.wordpress.com
This was way better than store bought! So refreshing and delicious!
The summer here in England is a bit chilly at the moment (16C/60F) but that said it is supposed to improve later in the week. I too have a bag of lemons to use up and I’m going to try this recipe as I’ve never made my own lemonade before. I’ve made elderflower cordial which works in a similar way to this recipe so with your beautifully clear instructions I’m going to tackle lemonade. Thank you for sharing this.
Yummy! Love a simple lemonade! Looks amazing
Fresh and homemade lemonade is the best! I always have lemons on hand. Love this recipe!
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