State Fair Lemonade

If you love state fair lemonade, discover how to make your own fresh-squeezed, authentic homemade version with just 3 simple ingredients!

Course Drinks

Cuisine American

Keyword lemonade

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 10

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 137kcal

Author Stacey aka the Soccer Mom

Cost $5

Make the simple syrup - The simple syrup is how we will sweeten our lemonade. In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water. Bring the mixture to a boil and stir until the sugar dissolves completely. Remove pan from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
Juice the lemons - While the syrup is cooling, juice the lemons until you have 1 cup of fresh lemon juice. Strain the juice to remove any seeds and excess pulp.
Mix - In a large pitcher, add the cooled simple syrup, fresh-squeezed lemon juice, and 4 cups of cold water. Stir well until combined.
Serve - If enjoying right away, pour lemonade into ice-filled glasses. If you want to keep for later, I recommend waiting to add ice cubes so you don't water it down. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Nutrition information is an estimate only.

Prep Tips:

Lemons - For the best flavor, always use fresh squeezed lemon juice, rather than bottled lemon juice. I recommend washing the outside of the lemons before using.

Variations - For extra flavor, you can add lemon zest from one lemon to the sugar when making your simple syrup. The natural oils from the zest of the lemons adds a nice lemon essence to the drink. If doing this, be sure to strain the simple syrup before adding to the pitcher.

Yield - This recipe as written yields 4-8 servings of lemonade, depending on the glass size and amount of ice. If you want to increase the output, you can double or triple all of the ingredient amounts. When making the simple syrup, you can make as much as you like, just maintain the 1:1 ratio of sugar to water.

Storage - Keep refrigerated for up to 3-5 days. Some separation is normal; stir to mix before serving.