Freshly Squeezed: How to Make Perfect Homemade Lemonade

You only need three ingredients to stir up a pitcher of cool, refreshing homemade lemonade. Enjoy one of life’s simple pleasures today! 

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Lemon. Sugar. Water.

Three simple ingredients – lemon juice, sugar, and water – stirred together in the right proportions, create a potion worthy of Hogwarts own Professor Slughorn. For me, a cool glass of this magical concoction can conjure memories decades old: of brightly colored lemonade stands, and beating summer sun, and my mother’s red hibiscus lemonade pitcher.

What memories can a pitcher of fresh homemade lemonade make for you?

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When It Comes to Homemade Lemonade, Fresh is Best

Making a pitcher of freshly squeezed lemonade takes a little more time than stirring together sugar-powder (or frozen concentrate) and water, but the results are so worth it! 

In my experience, lemonade made from fresh lemons is smoother, brighter, and more vibrant. It has, at the same time, more kick and less astringency than that made from either a mix or concentrate, and it requires less sugar to achieve the same level of sweetness. Plus, when you make your own, you can be assured that the lemon juice is made from organic sources, if that’s important to you.

The Simple Syrup Controversy: To Turn on the Stove or Not

There are two schools of thought when it comes to making homemade lemonade: the “Simple Syrup” school, and the “No Stoves in Summer” school. As with most things in life, I live on middle ground: when it comes to making fresh lemonade – just do what you gotta do. 

If I have time, I’ll make the simple syrup because, after some experimenting, I have found that making a simple syrup first results in a smoother infusion with more body to it. In other words, a simple syrup will yield the best homemade lemonade. Period. 

Nevertheless, if it is just too dang hot out to turn on the stove, then go with it: you can make a fine pitcher of lemonade by simply stirring the three ingredients together. However, if you choose to skip the simple syrup step, I strongly suggest making the lemonade at least two hours before serving to allow the sugar to completely dissolve and blend.

How to Get the Most Juice Out of Your Lemons

Here are a few easy tips for getting the most juice possible out of those lovely lemons. (HINT: These tricks will work with any citrus fruit!)

• Roll lemons firmly for one minute on the countertop before juicing. This action breaks down the membranes in the lemon that encapsulates the juice.  
• Microwave lemons for 10-15 seconds before juicing. Same. 
• Use a good, solid citrus juicer. I’ve owned a number of citrus juicers over the years – both manual and electric, and the one I have now is – by far – my favorite. It really does the job; plus, you can make nifty little towers from the empty peels!

PRO TIP: Don’t waste that valuable citrus zest! Zest citrus before juicing it, and freeze any zest that is not being used immediately. Add frozen zest to salads, breads, soups, casseroles, or just about anything to give it a little extra zip!

Before you take that first bite, you take in food with your eyes, your nose, even your ears. The tone of a dining experience is set by the presentation. The goal is set a mood while making the food appealing to all the senses. Generally speaking, the better food looks, the more people are likely to enjoy it.

Until recently, I’ve always been quite pragmatic when it comes to dishware, but recently, as seasonal options become more and more affordable, I’ve jumped on board. There are so many beautiful – and extremely affordable – seasonal options, and this year, I picked up these colorful floral melamine dishes (perfect for backyard bbq’s!) halfway thru the season at 80% off. If you’re thinking of getting some summery dishes, now is the time to do it! 

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