In our “neck of the woods”, we are now in the midst of a bit of a heat wave. When you couple the heat with our constant high humidity (we live very near the Atlantic Ocean) you definitely have the makings of an uncomfortable and a rather miserable day.
Because we live in what is usually a cooler climate. Think lots and lots of snow and super cold weather, most of us don’t have air conditioning in our homes. I guess we feel that for the two or three weeks a year that we have this oppressive weather, it isn’t worth investing in air conditioning. We usually just tough it out. However, these past few days I have been very much regretting that decision!
To stay cool we have run fans non-stop and have been spending outdoor time in the shade and indoor time in cooler rooms. We have also been conscious of staying hydrated by drinking lots of cold water and water-based beverages.
On a recent trip to a nearby grocery store I picked up a carton of lemonade, I thought it would be tasty and a nice change from plain water, but I was wrong. Although it was a popular brand, it tasted awful. It was overly sweet and had a metallicy taste to it. I ended up dumping the carton out.
Instead, on my next trip to the grocery store (which, by the way, is delightfully air-conditioned!) I picked up a bunch of lemons and decided to make my own lemonade. My son has made Homemade Lemonade often, so I used his recipe.
The difference between the store-bought and homemade lemonade is like night and day. This homemade lemonade is so incredibly good and well worth the little bit of time it takes to make.
What you are making is a bit of a sweeter version of a simple syrup. A traditional simple syrup is made using one part water to one part sugar. This recipe uses a one to one and one-half ratio.
I make my syrup the night before and chill it in the refrigerator. Then, the next morning I just squeeze the lemons and stir everything together.
- 1½ cups white sugar
- 8 cups cold water (divided)
- 1½ cups freshly squeezed lemon juice, (7-8 large lemons), leave any pulp, but remove seeds.
- In a small saucepan, combine sugar and 1 cup of the water.
- Bring to boil and stirring constantly to dissolve sugar.
- Allow mixture to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until chilled. (I usually do this step the night before I want to make the lemonade, but you could do it the day of)
- In a large pitcher, stir together chilled syrup, lemon juice and remaining 7 cups water.
- Serve over ice and garnish with lemon slices.
Hope you give this cold and refreshing lemonade a try, it is such a great thirst quencher!
As always, if you have any question at all, feel free to ask and I will do my very best to answer.
Pondside says
Homemade Lemonade is a good idea! We don’t have anywhere near your heatwave up here, but we are finding the nights warm nonetheless. Stay cool!
Monica Parlee says
Thanks so much Pondside, it is such a refreshing drink!
Shannon says
YUM! Looks fabulous and I love the pictures!
Monica Parlee says
Thanks so much Shannon!