INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup (225 g) white granulated sugar
- 1 cup (236 ml) water
- 1 cup (236 ml) lemon juice (About 6 large lemons)
- 8 cups (2 liters) cold water
- ½–1 tsp beet juice
- Ice
DIRECTIONS
- Combine 1 cup white granulated sugar and 1 cup water in a small saucepan. Simmer over med-low heat until the sugar dissolves. Remove the simple syrup from the heat and let it cool completely.
- Add the cooled simple syrup to a large pitcher. Then pour in the lemon juice using a strainer to catch any pulp or seeds. After that, add about 8 cups of cold water.
- To turn the lemonade pink, add ½ tsp of beet juice at a time until you get the pink color that you want. I usually add between ½-1 tsp. Store it in the refrigerator to chill.
- To serve, pour the lemonade into glasses filled with ice. Garnish with lemon slices and fresh mint or basil.
TIP
- If you don't want to stand around the stove to make the simple syrup you could always just heat up the water using a teapot. Once it is hot enough and "whistling"; take it off the stove and combine the hot water with the sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside to cool off completely.