The Modern
Lemonade Stand
story and photo by Linda Lichtenwalter-Evans
I
am sure we have all worked a lemonade stand growing up
with friends of ours. Mine consisted of Kool-Aid brand
refreshments, whatever my friends and I could find scattered in the
kitchen cupboards. We would sit and, if we were lucky, someone
coming home for lunch or a jogger on our path would stop to grab
a little paper cup of sugary lemonade (or whatever flavor we found).
Needless to say, it was nothing special and certainly not fresh, but
we were cute kids, so we would make a couple bucks (literally,
probably $2-3 each).
Now I can say I no longer drink those overly sweet powdered
beverages. I strictly make my citrus drinks from scratch and have
been able to play around with adding different flavors to my drinks.
I have come to realize that those citrus drinks, though delicious on
their own, don’t have to be boring. Why not jazz them up a bit? All
it takes is some citrus juice, infused syrup and a little enthusiasm.
“Citrus drinks, though delicious on
their own, don’t have to be boring.
Why not jazz them up a bit? All it
takes is some citrus juice, infused
syrup and a little enthusiasm.”
Gin basil cooler
40
First, let’s talk about the main ingredient, citrus. Of course,
the popular summertime beverage would be lemonade. There are
two popular varieties of lemons for lemonade. There is the Eureka
lemon, which is your classic variety, having a distinct tart flavor.
Then there is the Meyer lemon, believed to be a cross between the
lemon and the mandarin orange. Meyers have a less acidic flavor
and slight sweetness, as well as a beautiful deep yellow color.
“Rose, lavender and hibiscus are all
readily availavle in dried form and
pair delicously with fresh citrus.”
If you have a sweet tooth, you could also make some orangeade
this summer. The common variety found would be the Navel
orange, which has a subtle tartness to it. There are also Cara Cara
oranges, which have lower acidity and a slight berry note to the
flavor. If you want even sweeter orangeade, Mandarins or Tangerines
may be your ideal citrus to use, as they have a sweeter flavor and
even lower acidity than the Cara Cara. Blood oranges would also
make for a lovely, unique orangeade with their slight berry flavor
and beautiful rosy color making a vibrant beverage.
Limeade is also a delicious summertime treat, however, with the
current lime shortage, you may want to save this one for a special
occasion. The common market variety, known as Bearss, among
other names (like “expensive”), is slightly less tart than a lemon,
with a slight bitter note. There are also Key limes, which are much
smaller and slightly more sour and bitter.
Now that you know your options for your base, let’s talk syrup.
First of all, your basic simple syrup is just equal parts sugar and
water, heat up and stir to dissolve and it’s good to go. Now for the
fun part, let’s add some flavor. You can add different ingredients
along with the sugar and water to infuse into your simple syrup
making your refreshment unique. After you allow your ingredient to
infuse let your syrup cool and strain the syrup.
Your additional ingredient amount may vary, depending on the
natural flavor strength of your ingredient, as well as how strong you
want it to be in your final product. Here, you can add other fruits
into your simple syrup. Berries work particularly well for lemonade
and orangeade.
Dried flowers are also a nice addition to fresh beverages.
Rose, lavender, and hibiscus are all readily available in dried form
and pair deliciously with fresh citrus. Herbs are an often overlooked
ingredient in refreshing beverages, and they really should be used
more. Some great flavors that work wonderfully with citrus are
basil, thyme, and mint.