Thursday, July 4, 2013

Fourth of July: Lemonade


So I love going to fairs--state fairs, county fairs, town fairs, you name it. Not for all that fried food on a stick but for the lemonades...You know the stuff. The squeeze a fresh-cut lemon into a cup, add sugar and water and shake it up then hand it over.

True story. When we moved into our oh-so-lovely house in Louisville, KY oh-so-long ago (wish I'd never left!), one day the boys wanted a lemonade stand. Well, to be honest, I didn't really HAVE lemonade mix. What I DID have was lemons, water, ice and sugar. So I showed the boys how to make lemonade and set them up with a stand to make the real deal.

Well, the little girls next door came over for some lemonade and one of them took her cup back to her dad, saying--It's not even YELLOW. Well, the dad heard that and practically ran out to buy himself a cup of real lemonade, noting he hadn't had real lemonade in...forever. (Okay, years not forever. But you get my drift.)

Nothing compares to real food. Real drink. Real anything. So today, make yourself some real lemonade. Really almost as easy as adding fake powder to water.

Today, I decided my Fourth of July needed REAL lemonade.

1 quart water
2 lemons
Simple syrup: 1/2 cup sugar to 1/2 cup water, heat until sugar melts and let cool...

Roll lemons on counter to soften and make easier to juice. Cut in half. Use fork to extract all juice from each half, straining through fine mesh strainer.
Add lemon juice to water. Add simple syrup to taste. Stir. Pour over ice.

Now drink real lemonade.

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