There’s nothing better than an ice-cold glass of homemade lemonade on a hot day.

Fresh Homemade Lemonade in glasses

Refreshing ice-cold lemonade really hits the spot on a hot day.

It’s so nice to have fresh homemade lemonade in the fridge to enjoy with meals or just as a quick pick-me-up.

About Simple Syrup

The trick to making the perfect lemonade is to make it with simple syrup.

Before knowing this I’ve made my share of lemonade where I added granulated sugar directly into the lemon juice and water.

And it just never seemed to be sweet enough.

Well that’s because the sugar didn’t dissolve and instead just sank right to the bottom.

So in this recipe, the lemonade is sweetened with a quick and easy homemade simple syrup.

Fresh berries can also be added to the pan when making the simple syrup to make a berry lemonade.

Serving

An option is to chill the glasses before serving.

Fresh Homemade Lemonade in pitcher

And lemonade is so pretty served in various types of glasses such as a wine glass or Mason jar.

Let’s check out the ingredients.

Fresh Homemade Lemonade ingredients

Fresh lemons, granulated sugar, ice cubes, and water

HOW TO MAKE THIS RECIPE

A printable recipe with the measurements and instructions is located at the bottom of this post.

Simple Syrup

Lemon zest on cutting board

Zest the lemon and set aside for a moment.

Add water to pot

Heat a saucepan on low to medium heat and add water,

Add sugar to pot

…granulated sugar,

Lemon zest and sugar water in pot

…and lemon zest.

Boil lemon simple syrup in pot

Bring the sugar mixture to a boil and stir.

Lemon simple syrup in bowl

Once the sugar dissolves (about 6 minutes) carefully transfer the mixture from the pan into a heat-proof bowl.

Let the bowl of simple syrup cool on the counter until the temperature drops enough to chill it in the refrigerator.

Chill the mixture in the refrigerator.

Lemonade

After the simple syrup has chilled in the refrigerator…

Juice lemons in juicer

Juice and…

Lemon juice in jar

…strain the lemons.

Empty lemonade pitcher

Then in a large pitcher,

Add lemon juice to pitcher

…add the strained lemon juice,

Add simple syrup in pitcher

…chilled simple syrup,

Add water in pitcher

…and water.

Then stir.

Add ice cubes to pitcher of lemonade

Next…

Add ice cubes to lemonade in pitcher

…to the pitcher…

Add ice cube to pitcher of lemonade

…add ice.

Garnish

Sliced lemons on cutting board

Slice a lemon into about ½-inch wide slices, remove the seeds and…

Add sliced lemon to lemonade pitcher

…add to the pitcher.

Fresh Homemade Lemonade in pitcher

Serve

As an option, chill the glasses in the freezer ahead of time.

Fresh Homemade Lemonade in glasses

Serve right away while ice cold.

Fresh Homemade Lemonade in glasses

Serve over more ice, garnish with a sliced lemon.

Fresh Homemade Lemonade in glasses

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Glass of Lemonade with Ice

Fresh Homemade Lemonade

There’s nothing better than an ice cold glass of homemade lemonade on a hot day.
5 from 2 votes
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Yield: 5 Servings (may vary depending on the size of serving glasses)
Prep: 8 minutes
Cook: 7 minutes
(Time to chill the simple syrup): 2 hours
Total: 2 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

Simple Syrup:

  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • Zest from one lemon

Lemonade:

  • 1 cup fresh squeezed and strained lemon juice about 4 to 5 lemons
  • 4 cups cold water
  • 4 to 5 cups of ice cubes
  • 1 lemon, sliced into 1/2 inch thick slices (remove the seeds if possible) for garnish

Instructions

Simple Syrup:

  • Heat a sauce pan on low to medium heat and add water, sugar, and lemon zest. 
  • Bring the sugar and water mixture to a boil and stir. 
  • Once the sugar dissolves (about 6 minutes) carefully transfer the mixture from the pan into a heat-proof bowl.
  • Let the bowl of simple syrup cool on the counter until the temperature drops enough to chill it in the refrigerator. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator.

Lemonade:

  • After the simple syrup has chilled in the refrigerator…
  • In a large pitcher, add the strained lemon juice, chilled simple syrup, and water.  Stir together and add the ice

Serve:

  • Add sliced lemons to the pitcher and the serving glasses for garnish.  Serve over more ice.
  • Serve right away while ice cold.
  • As an option, chill the serving glasses in the freezer ahead of time.
Author: Nancy@CouponClippingCook
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Lemonade

This recipe was originally posted on June 15, 2013.

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