You only need three ingredients to make this classic homemade Lemonade Recipe. It’s so simple and refreshing–perfect for a summer day! Recipe includes a how-to video.
The Easiest, Most Refreshing Lemonade Recipe
I know some of you are going to see this and think, “Do we really need a lemonade recipe?”. Sure lemonade is one of those things that can be thrown together and still taste great (like mac and cheese or French toast); however, having a reliable recipe is still important.
Lemonade is easy to make, but getting the ratios right is critical. Too much lemon and it’s too tart and undrinkable, and too much water and it’s, well, watered down. What I’m sharing today is a perfectly balanced lemonade recipe that everyone is going to love.
Why You’ll Love My Lemonade Recipe:
- Super smooth and evenly sweetened, thanks to simple syrup.
- Can easily be doubled or tripled–perfect for lemonade stands!
- Not too tart and not too sweet; the balance of lemon and sugar is just right.
- Pairs well with iced tea to make an Arnold Palmer.
What You Need
You only need three simple ingredients to make this lemonade recipe (or two, if you don’t count water!):
- Lemons. It probably won’t come as a surprise to you that I recommend using freshly squeezed lemons for this recipe (as I do with my lemon cheesecake). You’ll only need 3-4 nice sized lemons to get one cup of juice.
- Sugar. Plain granulated sugar works just fine, you could also substitute caster sugar!
- Water. I use tap water because mine doesn’t have a flavor, but if yours has a chlorinated taste use bottled or filtered water.
SAM’S TIP: This isn’t totally necessary, but I like to garnish my homemade lemonade with additional sliced lemons for a bright and sunny look.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Lemonade
- Combine 1 cup each of sugar and water and cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves.
- Set the syrup aside to cool for about 10 minutes.
- Combine the cooled syrup and freshly-squeezed lemon juice in a pitcher.
- Add the remaining water and stir, then pour over ice and enjoy!
SAM’S TIP: I like to use this tool to juice my lemons; it makes the job so much easier!
Frequently Asked Questions
You could, but keep in mind the honey will impart a different flavor. I’d start with about ½ cup of honey and taste test before adding any more.
Yes, you can make this lemonade recipe using bottled lemon juice. My brother does this all the time, and the lemonade is still excellent.
Fresh mint, rosemary, and lavender are all delicious pairings with homemade lemonade! Or, you could always make my easy strawberry lemonade.
You can find me sipping a glass of this on my front porch all summer long 😎
More Summer Recipes:
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Homemade Lemonade Recipe
This recipe makes ½ gallon of lemonade but can successfully be doubled!
Ingredients
- 6 cups (1.4 L) water divided
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (236 ml) fresh-squeezed lemon juice¹ seeds removed, pulp may remain
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Combine 1 cup (236ml) water and 1 cup sugar in a small saucepan. Place over medium-low heat and stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside, allow to cool for 10 minutes.6 cups (1.4 L) water, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- Pour 1 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice into a pitcher. Add sugar/water mixture (simple syrup).1 cup (236 ml) fresh-squeezed lemon juice¹
- Add remaining 5 cups (1180ml) water and stir well. Pour over ice and serve, or transfer to refrigerator and allow to chill several hours before serving.
Notes
¹Lemon Juice
I really recommend fresh squeezed, but my brother often makes this recipe using bottled lemon juice with success.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
sia
looks amazing, me and my friends are going to have a lemonade stand on Saturday, thanks so much for this recipe.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Good luck, Sia! Thanks for using our recipe 🩷
Gabrielle
Used this recipie for a lemonade stand my friends and I did. I also used the Raspberry lemonade and Strawberry lemonade Recipie from you too! Everyone loved it, including me! 😁
Sam
That’s so awesome! I’m so glad they were all such a hit! 🙂
Wendy Stricker
I made this as directed except I used an equal amount of Monk Fruit for the sweetener instead of sugar. It tasted great! Thank you for this recipe!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy that substitute worked so well! Thanks for letting us know, Wendy 😊
Emily Dalton
Really great! It’s a bit sour though, which some of my family members did not like. I also added a bit too much pulp from the lemons. Less is more when it comes to pulp, I guess. ;D
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
The pulp could definitely be what caused it to be so sour too! Hopefully you have better luck next time 😊
K. Cheney
Cooking the syrup really makes all the difference. You wouldn’t think something so simple could be noticed in the taste but trust me it’s a step you want to make. Everyone LOVES my lemonade since I started making it with the simple sugar syrup.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you like the results! It really does make a difference 😊
Elle
I just made a batch and my only complaint is I should’ve made a triple recipe. This is really perfect lemonade when made with fresh lemons. I don’t have a squeeze but I nuked the lemons for 30 seconds, rolled them around before cutting and then used a spoon to squish all the juice out. Only need 5 lemons but some weren’t very big. Thank you 😊 This will be my go-to lemonade from now on.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Sounds like this was a big hit for you, Elle! We’re so happy you enjoyed it. Thanks for the review ❤️
me
A good start but A little tart for me. added more sugar and water.
Jeanna
Thanks for the recipe! I used 5/8 cup of sugar and it was plenty sweet! 8 lemons made just under 1 cup of lemon juice for me.
Sam
You’re very welcome, Jeanna! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it so much!
Lois Ransom
I made this today for the first time and it was perfect! This is exactly how I like my lemonade to taste. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you enjoyed the lemonade, Lois! ❤️
Peanut
When I was 13 my best friend and I would stay at each other’s home on weekends.Her job at home was to make lemonade at dinner time.This is how we made it but I had forgotten how much of lemon juice and sugar.Thanks so much!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hope this one brings back some sweet memories for you! 🩷
John McSauce
Brilliant
Aiden Smith
Second time trying to make lemonade!… this try went a lot better thanks to this recipe. Also, I had regards from family saying they enjoyed the lemonade. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for using our recipe, Aiden! We’re so glad everyone enjoyed it 😋
smV
This was so good! I live in Sicily and the Sicilian lemons were 🤤the only thing I did different was add 4cuos water instead of five and I could taste more lemon 😊
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yum! Thanks for using our recipe 🥰
Charlotte
I made this with my preschool class and we loved it. We used it to make strawberry lemonade popsicles. I ended up halving the sugar and I found it to be sweet enough for my tastes.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yum! Thanks for sharing, Charlotte 😊
Kasey
Made this with my kiddos today and it was so easy and so yummy!! I may try making it with monk fruit next time to cut back on sugar! But 10/10!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy everyone enjoyed it, Kasey! 😊
Evelyn
I was wondering about using monk fruit. I don’t know if it will make a syrup consistency though. I will have to try.
Shelby
My son is a lemonade fanatic and wanted to try making it ourselves. This was the first recipe we saw with a 5 star rating and it definitely didn’t disappoint!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy it was a hit, Shelby! Thanks for using our recipe 🥰