Although I love a chilled glass of rosé in the summer and the occasional icy cocktail, sometimes I love a glass of freshly squeezed lemonade. My favorite summer drink is to mix lemonade with iced tea and make what I call a half ‘n half, but it is also known as an Arnold Palmer.
When I was in high school, I worked at the New York State Fair for the two weeks it ran every year in Syracuse. It was a great way to make extra cash to buy my back‐to‐school clothes. I worked for a fried dough place that also owned lemonade stands. The lemonade stands were in the shape of a lemon sliced in half and then propped open. I would always work in the lemon which was fun because I got to people‐watch and drink lemonades. The occasional fried dough also helped. Whenever I drink fresh lemonades, it reminds me of when I worked in the lemon.
The recipe for lemonade is pretty basic; lemon juice, sugar, water and ice. In this recipe I use super fine sugar because it dissolves easier than regular granulated sugar. This sugar is found in most grocery stores. If you can’t find it you can use regular sugar…you may just have to stir it a little longer. I give a range for the amount of sugar because it is based on personal preference. My lemons were very tart so I used the full 3/4 cups of sugar. I used my hand lemon squeezer which works very well for juicing. This recipe can be halved or double based on your crowd size.
Serve a pitcher this week at your Fourth of July party with a pitcher of ice tea! You could also use this recipe to make Arnold Palmer popsicles or basil lemonade.
- 1 cup of lemon juice, from 4-5 lemons
- ½-3/4 cup of super fine sugar
- 4 cups cold water
- 1 cup ice
- lemon slices, for garnish
- In a large pitcher add all ingredients and stir vigorously until all the sugar is dissolved. Serve with additional ice if needed.
Source- Adapted from Ina Garten’s The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
