The Best Lemonade You'll Ever Have (With a Secret Ingredient!)

We have five-and-a-half weeks of summer before the first day of fall. That's 38 full days to ride bikes, wear shorts and drink icy lemonade. (Or you could host a lemonade stand: in NYC, you can make $240!). Luckily for us, Ashley from Not Without Salt is sharing the most refreshing recipe ever (which you can easily turn into a cocktail)...

The Best Lemonade You'll Ever Have
By Ashley of Not Without Salt

Before my son's school year ended, we were already making plans for our summer project: a lemonade stand. While we're still in negotiations with our six-year-old over exactly what the structure of the stand will entail, one thing is for sure—we’ve nailed our lemonade recipe.

Honey and lemons are a natural pairing, curing the common cold with their soothing warmth of sweetness and tang. So in our recipe, we’ve added a touch of light clover honey which sets our icy cup apart from the other neighborhood kids.

Regardless of how our stand shapes up, we can be sure to attract many a thirsty sidewalk traveler with our special brew. If you’re in Seattle, seek out our stand—and if not, whisk up a batch of this summer standard yourself.

Recipe: The Best Lemonade
Makes 6-8 servings

This is our base recipe but we’ve been known to steep rosemary in the mix, toss in fresh strawberries, or add shot of vodka or gin for the adults. (Add herbs while the syrup is still warm and then let steep as the syrup cools in the fridge. For a stronger flavor, you can boil the herbs with the syrup.)

You'll need:
¼ cup honey (use a light-flavored honey such as clover)
¼ cup sugar
1 cup water
1 cup fresh lemon juice (about 6 to 8 lemons)
2-3 cups water (for diluting)

In a small saucepan, combine the honey, sugar and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat. Give this mixture a quick stir to ensure all the sugar has dissolved. Chill this syrup in the fridge.

Meanwhile, juice enough lemons to produce 1 cup of lemon juice. (I like a bit of pulp in my lemonade, so I strain the juice and then add back a bit of pulp.)

When the syrup is cool, combine it with the lemon juice in a pitcher. Add in 2 cups water. (I prefer my lemonade strong but if it’s a bit too strong for you simply add more water.) Add ice and enjoy in the sun.

Mix it up: This is our base recipe but we’ve been known to steep rosemary or lavender (add them to the warm syrup, so they can steep while it chills), toss in fresh strawberries, or add shot of vodka or gin for the adults.
Thank you so much, Ashley!

P.S. More best recipes, including apple pie and a peach tart.

(Photos and recipe by Ashley from Not Without Salt. Thanks to Shoko for help with this series.)