Take your Gourmet Lemonade get-together up a notch by creating this quick & easy party ensemble.
Summer is a great time to get together with friends, neighbors and family, but is often daunting because we think we have to cook.
Who needs food? When it's hot, our appetite is low anyways and what we really want is something cold & refreshing!
I love parties where food or drink become the centerpiece...interaction, conversation and experimenation makes for a fun, low-key evening. As a lemonade mixologist you'll be the life or the party! Guests will gather 'round, read through your drink options and start sampling your gourmet concoctions.Enjoy!
P.S. Would love to hear what creative ways you're getting together this summer.
Now let’s get creative! I’ll start with what is probably the most popular upgrade: Raspberry lemonade.
**Please note that all my recipes are in parts. This will enable you to make just one cup or a whole pitcher. When I make an individual serving I usually use a 1/4 cup measuring cup. I use a 1 cup measuring cup to make up a pitcher.
Raspberry Mint Lemonade
{Can you beat that
color? Or the taste?}
1part Lemon Simple Syrup
1 part mashed Fresh
Raspberries
2 parts cold water
2 leaves Mint, muddled
in a bit of syrup per cup.
A few lemon slices
Ice
Garnish with mint leaves
Fizzy Kiwi Lemonade
{really love this
combo…and so pretty!}
1part Lemon Simple Syrup
1 part mashed Fresh Kiwi
(I like little bits of fruit pulp)
2 parts cold Pellegrino
or soda water (or if like me, you prefer no fizz, just add water)
Ice
Garnish with slices of
Kiwi, push into glass along the side so you can see that beautiful cross
section.
Cucumber Dill Lemonade
{if you like cucumbers,
you’ll love this version, so cool & fresh!}
1part Lemon Simple Syrup
1 part pureed Cucumbers
(I used a blender)
2 parts cold water
2 tsp. fresh dill,
muddled in a little syrup per cup.
Ice
Garnish with slices of
cold cucumber and a sprig of dill.
Watermelon Basil
Lemonade
{Love serving this in a
mason jar, very country rustic}
1part Lemon Simple Syrup
1 part pureed ripe
Watermelon
2 parts cold water
2 tsp. fresh basil,
muddled in a little syrup per cup.
Ice
Garnish with a chunk of
watermelon on the rim and slices of lemon in the jar.
Mellow Mango Lemonade
{Gorgeous color and
mango ice cubes to munch on}
1part Lemon Simple Syrup
1 part pureed Mango
2 parts cold water
Ice
Frozen mango ice cubes
(small, or cut up bigger ones)
Garnish with a slice of
Lemon and mint leaf.
Jalapeno Cilantro
Limeade
{Surprisingly this is
NOT hot, just beautifully peppery}
1part Lime Simple Syrup
3 parts cold water
1/2 jalapeno, no seeds
per glass
· Place jalapeno in
first two ingredients and let marinate for 20 minutes or more.
1 Tbsp. chopped
cilantro, muddles in a bit of syrup per cup.
Shaved or crushed ice
Garnish with a slice of
Jalapeno and a Cilantro leaf.
Options: Using a
margarita glass if fun for this drink and salting the rim is a perfect
accompaniment. Since your guests might be a bit nervous about this version, you
could create a tray of shooters so they can all get a little taste.
This idea sprang from
thinking about different herbs to use. I love cilantro and rest just fell into
place. I didn’t expect it to taste as good as it did. Surprisingly, the
jalapeno didn’t make it hot, just a mellow peppery sweet flavor. I might leave
the seeds in next time for a little more heat.
Honeydew Nutmeg Lemonade
{Place slices of
Honeydew in the glass for a convenient cool snack}
1part Lemon Simple Syrup
2 parts pureed Honeydew
2 parts cold water
a few grinds of fresh
Nutmeg
Ice
Garnish with a couple of
slices of fresh Honeydew, a mint leaf and some freshly ground nutmeg.
Strawberry Rhubarb
Lemonade
{for those who really
like to pucker up!}
1part Lemon Simple Syrup
1 part pureed
Strawberries
1/2 part Rhubarb Juice
(definitely just the juice here, the rhubarb has too much fiber.)
Ice
Garnish with a fresh
strawberry and a stick of rhubarb. Dip one end in sugar…brings back nostalgic
summer memories for me!
Fizzy Ginger Limeade
{Try frosting a mug in
the freezer for this classic…directions below}
1part Lime Simple Syrup
1 part cold water
2 parts cold Gingerale
1 tsp minced ginger.
Muddle with a bit of hot water and let sit for a few minutes to extract all the
flavor.
Ice
Garnish with a slice of
lime and a few shavings of lime rind.
How to frost a mug: Make
sure mug is clean and cool. Place in the freezer so air has room to move around
it. Spray with water and keep in freezer until ready to use. It takes about 60
minutes to build up a layer of frost depending on how cold your freezer is.
2 comments:
Loved this segment...we LOVE lemonade in the heat of the summer. Thanks for sharing all the extra's with us:)
Such a cute segment! I enjoyed watching it behind the scenes at the studio while I was preparing for mine. Thanks for the shout-out about the S.S.Smores- glad you liked them & that I got to met you. Hope to see you & get to work with you again. :)
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