4 Thirst-Quenching Botanical Lemonades

When summer serves up blue skies with long hot days, I crave lemonade. And not the kind that comes from a powdered mix packed with preservatives, colorants, and artificial sweeteners, but real, fresh-squeezed lemonade. The perfect balance of bright acidity, light tartness, and a hint of sweetness that I long for simply can’t be accomplished any other way. Plus, making freshly-squeezed lemonade only takes a few minutes, and it’s easy peasy lemon squeezy.

While a glistening, ice cold glass of lemonade is a delight unto itself, adding a splash of herbally-infused simple syrup takes this classic summer refreshment to a new level. Simple syrups are the key to any good lemonade, even if you aren’t using organic botanicals. Making a simple syrup ensures that your sweetener is distributed evenly throughout each sip instead of sinking to the bottom of the glass. Simple syrups are almost effortless to make and, if made in advance, they’ll keep for up to a month in the refrigerator. Keep a few syrups on hand to sweeten one glass at a time or a whole quart later. It’s also fun to mix-and-match to create unique lemonades!

Hand squeezing lemon with lemons in backround

Fresh-Squeezed Lemonade Recipe

Makes 1 quart.

Ingredients

Simple Syrup

  • 1/4 cup organic cane sugar or local honey
  • 3/4 cup water

Lemonade

  • 1 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice (roughly 4 – 6 organic lemons)
  • 2 cups of water

Directions

Simple Syrup

  1. Combine sweetener with water in a small sauce pan on low heat.
  2. Slowly stir until sweetener has dissolved. If using honey, take care not to boil.
  3. Remove pan from heat, and set syrup aside to cool.

Lemonade

  1. Roll the lemons back and forth on the counter a few times — it magically makes them juicier!
  2. Slice each lemon in half and juice.
  3. Combine lemon juice, simple syrup, and water in 32 oz. glass jar.
  4. Chill, or serve immediately over ice.

(I prefer my lemonade on the tart side. If you prefer it sweeter, increase the sweetener to 1/2 cup and decrease the water to 1/2 cup.)

Display of colorful iced beverages and botanicals.

Fresh-Squeezed Botanical Lemonade Recipes

Matcha Lemonade Recipe

Matcha, a delightful powdered green tea from Japan, gives this lemonade its vibrant green color while contributing a rich, earthy, and slightly bitter finish. 

Matcha Syrup Ingredients

Directions

  1. Sift matcha into sugar, stir to combine. This will help prevent the matcha from forming clumps when added to the water.
  2. Combine sugar and matcha mixture with water in small saucepan on medium heat.
  3. Slowly stir until sugar and matcha have dissolved.
  4. Remove pan from heat and set the syrup aside to cool.
  5. Pour syrup into a glass jar and combine with base lemonade recipe, using the matcha syrup in place of the simple syrup.
  6. Stir and chill, or serve immediately over ice.

Mason jar of iced lemonade with lemon and lavender flowers sticking out

Lavender Honey Lemonade Recipe

Lavender and honey are the perfect marriage of floral and sweet without being heavy or cloying.  

Lavender Honey Syrup Ingredients

Directions

  1. Combine lavender flowers and water in small saucepan on medium heat.
  2. Gently simmer for five minutes.
  3. Remove pan from heat, allow to cool slightly, then mix in honey.
  4. Let steep for 30 minutes.
  5. Strain syrup into a glass jar and combine with base lemonade recipeusing the lavender syrup in place of the simple syrup.
  6. Stir and chill, or serve immediately over ice.

 

Ginger Spirulina Lemonade Recipe

Ginger adds a spicy punch to this light, blue-green lemonade. If you prefer it less spicy, halve the amount of ginger root.

Ginger Spirulina Syrup Ingredients

Directions

  1. Combine sugar, water, and ginger root in small saucepan on medium heat.
  2. Gently simmer for 5 minutes.
  3. Remove pan from the heat.
  4. Let steep for 30 minutes.
  5. Strain syrup into a glass jar and combine with spirulina and base lemonade recipeusing the ginger syrup in place of the simple syrup.
  6. Stir and chill, or serve immediately over ice.

Hand pouring rich red fluid into mason jar of iced lemonade

Mint Hibiscus Lemonade Recipe

This gorgeous ruby red lemonade packs a tart punch with a cool, minty aftertaste.

Mint Hibiscus Syrup Ingredients

Directions

  1. Combine sugar, water, hibiscus flowers, and mint tea in small saucepan on medium heat.
  2. Gently simmer for 5 minutes.
  3. Remove the pan from heat.
  4. Let steep for 30 minutes.
  5. Strain syrup into a glass jar and combine with base lemonade recipeusing the mint hibiscus syrup in place of the simple syrup.
  6. Stir and chill, or serve immediately over ice.

 

Interested in more colorful Warm-Weather drinks?

Try Our 5 Iced Teas for Summer 

You may also enjoy:

4 Homemade Herbal Lemonade Recipes Pinterest Pin from Mountain Rose Herbs

 


Topics: Recipes, Tea & Herbal Drinks

Kiley

Written by Kiley on July 17, 2018

Kiley Gwynn, certified BJCP beer judge and Brand Director at Ninkasi Brewing Company, enjoys a wide variety of hobbies—but her deepest passion is homebrewing. She loves spreading the joy of homebrewing and over the last decade has become deeply involved in the Oregon homebrewing community. Kiley is an award-winning homebrewer who holds a seat on the executive committee of Cascade Brewers Society and is a member of American Homebrewers Association Diversity Subcommittee. She loves brewing herbally inspired beers at educational events like Learn to Homebrew Day. When she’s not working as a blog contributor at Mountain Rose Herbs or in her homebrewery, you’ll likely find her under a pile of yarn with a crochet project, in the kitchen working on her latest small batch canning adventure or chasing her rescued red heeler down the beach.


WELCOME

We offer one of the most thorough selections of certified organic herbs, spices, and botanical products and are commited to responsible sourcing.

4 Thirst-Quenching Botanical Lemonades

When summer serves up blue skies with long hot days, I crave lemonade. And not the kind that comes from a powdered mix packed with preservatives, colorants, and artificial sweeteners, but real, fresh-squeezed lemonade. The perfect balance of bright acidity, light tartness, and a hint of sweetness that I long for simply can’t be accomplished any other way. Plus, making freshly-squeezed lemonade only takes a few minutes, and it’s easy peasy lemon squeezy.

While a glistening, ice cold glass of lemonade is a delight unto itself, adding a splash of herbally-infused simple syrup takes this classic summer refreshment to a new level. Simple syrups are the key to any good lemonade, even if you aren’t using organic botanicals. Making a simple syrup ensures that your sweetener is distributed evenly throughout each sip instead of sinking to the bottom of the glass. Simple syrups are almost effortless to make and, if made in advance, they’ll keep for up to a month in the refrigerator. Keep a few syrups on hand to sweeten one glass at a time or a whole quart later. It’s also fun to mix-and-match to create unique lemonades!

Hand squeezing lemon with lemons in backround

Fresh-Squeezed Lemonade Recipe

Makes 1 quart.

Ingredients

Simple Syrup

  • 1/4 cup organic cane sugar or local honey
  • 3/4 cup water

Lemonade

  • 1 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice (roughly 4 – 6 organic lemons)
  • 2 cups of water

Directions

Simple Syrup

  1. Combine sweetener with water in a small sauce pan on low heat.
  2. Slowly stir until sweetener has dissolved. If using honey, take care not to boil.
  3. Remove pan from heat, and set syrup aside to cool.

Lemonade

  1. Roll the lemons back and forth on the counter a few times — it magically makes them juicier!
  2. Slice each lemon in half and juice.
  3. Combine lemon juice, simple syrup, and water in 32 oz. glass jar.
  4. Chill, or serve immediately over ice.

(I prefer my lemonade on the tart side. If you prefer it sweeter, increase the sweetener to 1/2 cup and decrease the water to 1/2 cup.)

Display of colorful iced beverages and botanicals.

Fresh-Squeezed Botanical Lemonade Recipes

Matcha Lemonade Recipe

Matcha, a delightful powdered green tea from Japan, gives this lemonade its vibrant green color while contributing a rich, earthy, and slightly bitter finish. 

Matcha Syrup Ingredients

Directions

  1. Sift matcha into sugar, stir to combine. This will help prevent the matcha from forming clumps when added to the water.
  2. Combine sugar and matcha mixture with water in small saucepan on medium heat.
  3. Slowly stir until sugar and matcha have dissolved.
  4. Remove pan from heat and set the syrup aside to cool.
  5. Pour syrup into a glass jar and combine with base lemonade recipe, using the matcha syrup in place of the simple syrup.
  6. Stir and chill, or serve immediately over ice.

Mason jar of iced lemonade with lemon and lavender flowers sticking out

Lavender Honey Lemonade Recipe

Lavender and honey are the perfect marriage of floral and sweet without being heavy or cloying.  

Lavender Honey Syrup Ingredients

Directions

  1. Combine lavender flowers and water in small saucepan on medium heat.
  2. Gently simmer for five minutes.
  3. Remove pan from heat, allow to cool slightly, then mix in honey.
  4. Let steep for 30 minutes.
  5. Strain syrup into a glass jar and combine with base lemonade recipeusing the lavender syrup in place of the simple syrup.
  6. Stir and chill, or serve immediately over ice.

 

Ginger Spirulina Lemonade Recipe

Ginger adds a spicy punch to this light, blue-green lemonade. If you prefer it less spicy, halve the amount of ginger root.

Ginger Spirulina Syrup Ingredients

Directions

  1. Combine sugar, water, and ginger root in small saucepan on medium heat.
  2. Gently simmer for 5 minutes.
  3. Remove pan from the heat.
  4. Let steep for 30 minutes.
  5. Strain syrup into a glass jar and combine with spirulina and base lemonade recipeusing the ginger syrup in place of the simple syrup.
  6. Stir and chill, or serve immediately over ice.

Hand pouring rich red fluid into mason jar of iced lemonade

Mint Hibiscus Lemonade Recipe

This gorgeous ruby red lemonade packs a tart punch with a cool, minty aftertaste.

Mint Hibiscus Syrup Ingredients

Directions

  1. Combine sugar, water, hibiscus flowers, and mint tea in small saucepan on medium heat.
  2. Gently simmer for 5 minutes.
  3. Remove the pan from heat.
  4. Let steep for 30 minutes.
  5. Strain syrup into a glass jar and combine with base lemonade recipeusing the mint hibiscus syrup in place of the simple syrup.
  6. Stir and chill, or serve immediately over ice.

 

Interested in more colorful Warm-Weather drinks?

Try Our 5 Iced Teas for Summer 

You may also enjoy:

4 Homemade Herbal Lemonade Recipes Pinterest Pin from Mountain Rose Herbs

 


Topics: Recipes, Tea & Herbal Drinks

Kiley

Written by Kiley on July 17, 2018

Kiley Gwynn, certified BJCP beer judge and Brand Director at Ninkasi Brewing Company, enjoys a wide variety of hobbies—but her deepest passion is homebrewing. She loves spreading the joy of homebrewing and over the last decade has become deeply involved in the Oregon homebrewing community. Kiley is an award-winning homebrewer who holds a seat on the executive committee of Cascade Brewers Society and is a member of American Homebrewers Association Diversity Subcommittee. She loves brewing herbally inspired beers at educational events like Learn to Homebrew Day. When she’s not working as a blog contributor at Mountain Rose Herbs or in her homebrewery, you’ll likely find her under a pile of yarn with a crochet project, in the kitchen working on her latest small batch canning adventure or chasing her rescued red heeler down the beach.