You know what I’m good at? Making lemonade.
No, there is no analogy here, I’m not saying that when life hands me lemons I am good at turning it into a positive situation. Because I’m actually not. I am, however, good at literally taking the lemons from my fridge and creating a tasty, refreshing summer beverage.
[Related: I'm also not so great at photographing said lemonade but don't let that stop you from making it. I'm sure yours will look worlds prettier.]
Lemon and basil is such a good savory combination that I couldn’t stop thinking about how it would be in something sweeter. However, after an indulgent weekend followed by a baking spree that resulted in a cheesecake and a savory galette, I thought I should keep things a little lighter.
This is a great way to cool off or rehydrate, if you wanted to add some vodka to this to make it adults-only, I certainly won’t be the one to stop you.
While the basil infuses amazing flavor into the lemonade, I’m probably going to recommend that you not consume said basil – it won’t hurt you, but like the mint in mojitos, is mostly there for flavor.
Fresh Basil Lemonade
Adapted from Food Network
What You Need:
2 cups sugar
6 cups water
2 cups fresh lemon juice (about 10 lemons)
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
How-To:
1. Make simple syrup. Place 2 cups sugar and 2 cups water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir until sugar is dissolved and let cool.
2. Place lemon juice in a large pitcher, add remaining 4 cups water and 1 cup of the simple syrup or more to taste. Stir in mint leaves and refrigerate for 1 hour. Serve over ice.
Print This Recipe
{ 51 comments… read them below or add one }
Basil + Lemonade. Love it!
I love basil and lemon together. It’s so hot here right now, and this looks so refreshing.
LOVE basil – so i am certain i would love this too! And I love herbs so much I totally eat the leaves out of cocktails
. <– weirdo.
Mmm, that sounds so refreshing!
nom nom! You know, I don’t think I’ve ever actually MADE lemonade without using a powder (gross, I know…). This sounds so refreshing
Perfect combination! I can’t wait to start getting fresh basil from our CSA so I can try this.
Hah, we have the same post today! Mine is with mint!
i have some meyer lemon juice that i stuck in the freezer this winter… and lemonade is a perfect use for it! love the basil addition
I love home made lemonade with REAL lemons. Basil is an addition I must try!
So refreshing on hot summer days!
So simple and refreshing! A dash of vodka wouldn’t hurt in there
I love the combination of lemon and basil. Homemade lemonade is so much better than the caloric store-bought lemonade with loads of sugar. Ha! Great suggestion to add a bit of vodka–I’m sure it would be delicious.
Oh, yum! I recently made strawberry lemonade. Very refreshing too. I’m sure a dash of vodka would be nice in either one
Wish I had one right now
Looks delicious, refreshing, and cooling!
This sounds so good right about now. Just checked the temperature and it’s 106 degrees outside!
awesome drink on my to do list
Awesome…that sounds so good!
Another success! Flavored lemonade just takes it up a notch and makes it fancy — even for family.
That sounds wonderful. I have so much mint, I’m always using that. I should take a break, or just make two different batches.
I always add mint to my drinks but I should try it with basil. I just planted some lemon verbana to give my drinks a different twist! Great combination!
Ahhhh, lemonade. So summer so refreshing. I really love that you threw basil in this, would never think to do that!
That’s a wise answer to a tricky quetison
OOOH….this sounds sooo good. At the risk of sounding like a boozer….I bet some vodka added would make a really good cocktail for our weekly “Cocktail Sunday”! I’ve bookmarked this…
Have a great weekend Maris.
Yum! Sounds like some awesome flavors! Thanks for sharing
You know this is such a clever idea! Basil and Summer go together as well as lemonade and Summer!
I think your photo is lovely:)
Your photos are making me thirsty and you just gave me inspiration for my lime-thyme!
i’ve heard so much about adding basil to drinks, but i haven’t tried it yet!!! this looks fabulous!
Looks wonderfully refreshing – I’m going to grab a handful of basil at the farm! (And, I’ll probably give the vodka a try!)
Your photos look darn good to me! Perfect summer refresher!!!!
I’ve just finished making a pitcher of this. So far, so good! It is delicious.Doesn’t everyone have lemonade for breakfast? Have a wonderful weekend. Blessings…Mary
How absolutely wonderful. I have fresh basil and a few of the last lemons from my tree! Can’t wait to try this!
WOW… that sounds so refreshing..,.. lemon/basil mojitos later ?
Lovee this combination! Simple and looks sooo refreshing!
This look so refreshing, have a similar recipe at my blog with mint
Glad to come here thru twitter.
Basil makes everything divine- I want a tall glass right away to kill this scorching heat.
I love your confidence in making lemonade and I just jotted down for tonight’s dinner as I have some guests coming over. Great timing! Never added basil, but I like it sounds a little fancier than regular lemonade.
This looks and sounds so refreshing.
Great idea to use up all the basil from my garden! Love it!
This would certainly quench my thrist Maris!!! Loving this version!
I planted so much basil this spring. With basil I feel you can never plant enough. I would love to try some in this lemonade!
Your post made me laugh; I am also not so good with the lemon to lemonade situation when dealing with life. However, this I may be able to handle! Looks so refreshing.
This sounds so refreshing and perfect for summer entertaining!
Love how refreshing this sounds! I’ll have to save this for our summer months to come
Geez, this is so simple and yet why dont more people think of adding some basil leaves to some homemade lemonade??? What a great thirst quencher, especially in summer!
I’ve never been very good at making lemonade. I see the secret is making a simple syrup first. I’ll have to give it a try.
Basil lemonade sounds heavenly..
will definetly try it soon as I have a basil bush threatening to takeover my kitchen
We made a strawberry basil lemonade not that long ago. Love the addition of herbs!
normally I’m not a huge lemonade fan but I love basil and this combination sounds fabulous!!
So hot here today, made this with a peach cobbler and impressed everyone. Thanks for the great recipe!
{ 1 trackback }