Name: Homemade Strawberry Lemonade
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 8 (Makes 1/2 gallons)
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 to 1.5 cups fresh or frozen strawberries (if fresh, remove stems); 2 cups water; 1.5 cups sugar; Fruit simple syrup; 1 cup lemon juice; 3 to 4 cups water; Ice (at least 2 cups); Sliced lemon or additional strawberries for serving (optional)

Homemade strawberry lemonadeis a sweet and fruity refreshment for hot summer days and long afternoons in the sun!

It doesn’t get much more refreshing on a sweaty and hot day than a full glass of iced down strawberry lemonade.Kids love it, adults love it, heck, I’m sure the dog would love it (but I don’t recommend or advise anyone gives their dog lemonade!).

It’s such a fun treat and aneasy beverage to makeand enjoy for a week or two.ORnext time you’re going to a pool party or plan to spend a lot of time outside, add this to your morning to-do list… Everyone will be thanking you as they sip it down!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Refreshing Flavor:The combination of fresh strawberries and freshly squeezed lemon juice is so refreshing and tasty.
Homemade Goodness:If you’re a fan of powdered strawberry lemonade, you’ll go crazy for the homemade stuff.
Make-Ahead Convenience:You can make the simple syrups ahead of time and mix the lemonade up whenever you’re ready.

Ingredients

For the Fruit Simple Syrup

Fresh or Frozen Strawberries
Water
Sugar

For the Lemonade

Fruit Simple Syrup
Lemon Juice:Use fresh squeezed, not bottled, unless you can find the fancy kind at Costco
Water
Ice
Sliced Lemon or Additional Strawberries:for serving, optional

See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities

Popular Substitutions or Variations

You could easily use the Fruit Simple Syrup recipe to make syrups from other berries and use that to make all kinds of delicious flavored lemonades. Raspberries and blueberries go really well with lemons in just about anything.

How to Make Homemade Strawberry Lemonade

Step #1.In a medium sauce, bring all the fruit syrup ingredients to a boil until the sugar is dissolved and simmer for several minutes until the fruit is soft, stirring often.

Step #3.Pour the fruit syrup mixture into a fine mesh sieve placed over a bowl. Mash the fruit through with the back of a spoon. Discard the remaining pulp and seeds. Place the bowl’s contents into a heat proof container, like a mason jar, and store in the fridge to chill.

Step #2.Remove the pan from the heat, mash the fruit with a potato masher and set aside to steep for 10 minutes.

Step #4.To make the lemonade, combine the fruit simple syrup, lemon juice, and water in a pitcher and stir to combine. To serve, pour over ice and garnish with lemon slices and additional strawberries as desired.

Recipe FAQs

Are strawberry lemonade and pink lemonade the same?

Pink lemonade that you might get at a store or restaurant is often colored with raspberry juice, cranberry juice, or crushed strawberries. Sometimes, it’s just red food dye. So unless it says “strawberry lemonade,” I wouldn’t assume it will have a strawberry flavor!

Are lemons sweeter than strawberries?

Fun fact: Lemons actually have more sugar than strawberries! A lemon has about 70 percent sugar, while strawberries contain only 40 percent. But lemons taste more sour than sweet because they have a much higher level of citric acid (between 3 to 6 percent) that makes them more tart flavored.

How long does homemade lemonade last?

Homemade strawberry lemonade will last in the fridge for up to 5 to 7 days!

Expert Tips

Make a double batch anduse some in popsicle moldsfor sweet and cold treats for the summer.
Make some strawberry simple syrup to keep on hand andadd to other favorite drinks: ginger ale, lemon lime soda, or even make some homemade Italian sodas.So, so fun for parties and family gatherings.
Adding a few mint leaves to your Strawberry Lemonadepitcher will make it look so fancy and add another delicious flavor to the combo. If you’ve never tried it, you definitely should. (Stir the mint leaves in 30-60 minutes before you’d like to serve it.)