Lavender Lemonade
Homemade lemonade with infused lavender.
The sugar/lemon balance will depend on what types of lemons you are using (Meyer lemons are less tart than regular lemons), and your own preference for sweetness.
While all varieties of lavender are edible, English lavender and Provence lavender are most often used for culinary purposes.
If you use fresh, garden flowers, make sure they have not been sprayed with pesticides. Do not use florist flowers.
INGREDIENTS
- A small handful of freshly picked and rinsed lavender flowers or a tablespoon of dried lavender flowers
- 1 cup white, granulated sugar
- 2 cups of boiling water for the infusion
- 1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 cups or more of cold water
- Ice
METHOD
1 Cut the lavender flowers from the stems (no need to strip) and place in a medium bowl (a large pyrex measuring bowl works great because you can pour easily from it). Pour the sugar over the flowers and use your (clean) fingers to gently rub the flowers into the sugar.
2 Pour 2 cups of boiling water over the lavender sugar and stir with a spoon until the sugar has melted. Cover and let infuse for 30 minutes (or up to several hours).
3 Strain the lavender-infused simple syrup and pour into a serving carafe or pitcher.
4 Stir in the lemon juice. Add another two cups of water. Taste and adjust for tartness. Add more lemon juice if too sweet. Add more sugar if too tart. Add ice and more water to desired level of concentration. Note that the ice will melt eventually, further diluting the drink.
Add some thinly sliced lemons and a few lavender sprigs to the serving pitcher for presentation.
Yield: Serves 6.
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