Free-Style Lemonade

One of the best thirst-quenching treats of summer is lemonade. Nothing beats lemonade from freshly squeezed lemons. But if you’re like me – well, frankly, that’s just too much work! Luckily for all of us, there are plenty of brands of pre-made lemonade and mixes to choose from.

But whether you make your own freshly squeezed lemonade or buy your favorite already made, here are some ideas to put a new free-style spin on one of our favorite summer drinks:

– STRAWBERRY LEMONADE: chill a pitcher of lemonade and add mashed and whole strawberries. Let the lemonade chill for a few hours for the flavors to draw together.

– GREEN TEA LEMONADE: Add lemonade to iced green tea. Free-style it by mixing it to your liking (i.e., half lemonade and half green tea or 2/3 lemonade 1/3 green tea, etc.) Chill several hours for flavors to draw together.

– PEACH-LEMONADE GREEN TEA: Add some smashed peaches and slices into a pitcher of lemonade. Or try a mix of iced green tea and lemonade with peaches. Chill for a few hours for the flavors to draw together.

If you simmer your own Green Tea Bags for your iced green tea, add the mashed peaches while the tea bags are simmering/steeping, then add the peach slices when you chill the tea.

– MINT LEMONADE: Add a few fresh mint leaves (such as mojito mint, spearmint or peppermint) to your glass of tea to add a hint of refreshing mint. TIP: Bruising/muddling the mint leaves will bring out more flavor.

– LEMONADE ICE CUBES: Freeze ice-cube trays with lemonade and/or freeze lemonade with mint leaves to add to your favorite iced-tea or summer cocktails (these cubes are also great in iced-tea).

– LEMONADE GARNISHES: Here are some ideas to make your lemonade festive. Spear a maraschino cherry and fresh lemon and/or lime slice, spear a whole strawberry with a hefty mint leaf, spear a strawberry and large blueberries, float fresh blueberries on top of the lemonade, spear one or two slices of fresh peaches. The garnishes for lemonade are endless – think about it and come up with your own!

Eco-Friendly TIP: Lemonade is always best thoroughly chilled and sipped through a straw. If you haven’t already ditched the plastic straws, there’s an abundance of bio-degradable paper straws available at retailers and even online. BONUS: paper straws come in all sizes and colors and are sure to add a festive flair to any drink.

FOR THOSE SWELTERING HOT SUMMER DAYS, THERE’S NOTHING LIKE A COMFY LOUNGE CHAIR, A GOOD BOOK AND A GLASS OF LEMONADE! Need a good book recommendation? Then visit the “books” category on this site.