There are few drinks as simple, fun, and refreshing as pink lemonade. During our rigorous recipe testing, we discovered that individual lemonade preferences vary—a lot. Some like it super sweet, others prefer theirs extra lemony with a big tart punch, while others like a less intense, more diluted flavor. Ours is tart and tangy, but you can easily adjust it to suit your palate. If you’d like it sweeter, add more sugar. If it’s too potent, add more water. Prefer a pinker hue? Add an extra splash of cranberry juice (just a little at a time because the color changes fast).
Yield: 4–6 servings
Prep time: 15 minutes | Total time: 15 minutes
½ cup room-temperature water
1 cup granulated sugar
4 cups cold water
2½ cups freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 generous pinches of salt
1–2 tablespoons pure cranberry juice (adjust to achieve desired pink color)
1. In a small saucepan, bring ½ cup of roomtemperature water to a boil over medium heat. Add the sugar and whisk until dissolved to create a simple syrup, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat.
2. In a pitcher, combine 4 cups of cold water with the lemon juice, simple syrup, and salt and mix well. Slowly add the cranberry juice (just a little bit at a time) until you achieve your desired hue of pink. Note that a small amount of pure cranberry juice will change the color dramatically. (If using diluted cranberry juice rather than pure cranberry juice, you’ll need more.)
Friendly Suggestion: Can’t find pure cranberry juice? Other forms of cranberry juice will work too—you’ll just need to adjust the amount you add to get your desired pink hue.
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