Old fashioned homemade pink lemonade with fresh squeezed lemon juice, simple syrup of sugar and water, and cranberry juice for color. This pink lemonade is the cherry top to summer days.
Why is pink lemonade so much more appealing than regular lemonade?
What makes pink lemonade pink? Doesn’t the canned stuff just has food dye in it to make it pink? I haven’t bought canned pink lemonade in decades so don’t really know. (But just in case you’re curious too, Joe Sevier at Epicurious has some theories.)
How to Make Pink Lemonade
I’m guessing the canned stuff we grew up with is pink only through the addition of artificial dyes. But we don’t need to do that.
You know the easiest way to make lemonade pink? Add some cranberry juice!
Unsweetened cranberry juice is tart, just like unsweetened lemon juice. All we need to do to turn our homemade lemonade pink is to incorporate some cranberry juice to the mix.
We make a simple syrup by heating water and sugar until the sugar dissolves, then we mix it with lemon juice, cranberry juice, and some more water. Add a few ice cubes and we’re done!
Isn’t it pretty? It’s the perfect refreshing cooler for a hot summer day.
Old Fashioned Pink Lemonade Recipe
- Yield: Serves 6
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup sugar (if using unsweetened cranberry juice, 1 cup if using sweetened)
- 4 cups water (divided)
- 1 cup cranberry juice
- 1 cup lemon juice
Method
1 Make simple syrup: Heat sugar and 1 cup of the water in a small saucepan until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat.
2 Stir together the remaining water, cranberry juice, lemon juice and simple syrup. Make adjustments to taste.
3 Chill for an hour, or add ice to cool.
