When the weather is warm, a nice cool drink is just what you need! This Easy Strawberry Basil Lemonade is perfect for a backyard barbeque or a picnic. It’s lemonade with the dial turned all the way up. It is sure to become a favorite!
Classic Combination-
Basil and Strawberry go together like peanut butter and jelly! Whether it’s in ice cream, a salad, or this lemonade, I have never run across these two flavors in the same dish that it wasn’t a win. This is easy, and so refreshing on a hot day.
I really love this flavor powerhouse, and you know how I enjoy putting normally savory herbs into sweeter recipes. The basil and the strawberry really come through without cancelling out the lemon.
What You Will Love About This Recipe
What’s not to love? It can be made ahead, and you have the option to either strain the lemonade or serve it as is, with little bits of strawberry pulp and chopped basil. I think of it much like the pulp/ no pulp debate with orange juice. If you know you won’t like having some pulp or are serving it to those who don’t, it’s as simple as straining it.
Should you choose not to strain the lemonade, you will need to shake it well before serving, since things will settle to the bottom. It’s worth it though!
This is great to bring to parties when you aren’t sure what everyone else will bring. It’s sure to be a hit!
Frequently Asked Questions
You can either do this through a fine mesh sieve, or a colander with very small holes.
It most definitely can. You can use two pitchers if you don’t have a large one to put it all in.
I have not tested this recipe with a substitute, but any that you can cook with should work, just read the package directions to see if you would use an equal amount of the substitute as you would sugar, or if it’s a different amount.
Serving Suggestions
This is great with burgers and potato salad, or as part of a picnic with my curried chicken salad with coconut. If you have some strawberries that you know will go bad quickly if you don’t act fast, you can make the strawberry basil puree a couple of days ahead of time and have it in the fridge ready to go, if you don’t plan to make the lemonade right away.
I love this in a tall glass all by itself, maybe with a little ice. I personally happen to prefer it unstrained, but maybe that’s just me.
This lemonade is perfect for picnics and barbeques, and goes well with my Rhubarb and Apricot Hand Pies or Curried Chicken Salad with Coconut.
I hope you love this cooling and flavorful lemonade! Please leave a rating or comment and share with friends on Social Media. If you haven’t signed for my weekly newsletter with all the latest updates and your free copy of the Salad Gazette, you can do that below. Happy Cooking!
Easy Strawberry Basil Lemonade
Ingredients
- 2 cups of Strawberries, green tops removed
- 1 1/2 cups of Granulated Sugar
- 1/3 cup of Fresh Basil, chopped (about 15 large leaves)
- Juice of about 6 large Lemons (about 1- 1/2 cups)
- 6 cups of Water
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, heat the strawberries and sugar on medium low heat for about 10 minutes until the sugar has dissolved, stirring occasionally.
- While the strawberries and sugar cook, juice the lemons and add the juice to a half gallon pitcher along with the 6 cups of water.
- Once the sugar is almost dissolved, roughly chop the basil leaves and add to the saucepan and stir.
- After sugar is completely dissolved, use an immersion blender to puree the strawberry mixture, or pour the contents of the saucepan into a standard blender and puree until smooth.
- Add the strawberry basil mixture to the pitcher of lemon juice and water and stir.
- Refrigerate for at least four hours or until cool. Can be served as is or pour the lemonade through a fine mesh strainer to catch the basil.
Notes
Be sure to stir before serving, because the strawberry mixture can settle to the bottom of the pitcher.
Keeps refrigerated for about 5 days.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 194Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 27mgCarbohydrates: 51gFiber: 3gSugar: 45gProtein: 1g
All information presented and written within this site are intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist or registered dietitian and any nutritional information should only be used as a general guideline. Statements within this site have not been evaluated or approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is provided for recipes contained on this site. This information comes from online calculators. Although The Copper Table attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
I’ve got to give this a try!!
This is my favorite drink for the summer! The flavors are amazing and it is not too sweet.
Love the use of the basil goes perfect with citrus and fruit. A very nice drink to quench the thirst.
This sounds delightful, I can’t wait to give it a try. I love strawberry and basil together such lovely flavors.
This is the perfect summer drink! Love the addition of basil. So yummy!
This recipe was just what we needed here in Mexico! It was so refreshing in the 36-degree weather!
This looks amazing, I’ve never tried basil with strawberries. Thanks for the recipe! Much love from your fiesta party neighbour.
This sounds so good. I would love to try it 🙂
Thank you Claire, I hope you love it!
What an outstanding and awesome recipe. Thank you for sharing at #SeniorSalonPitStop 257. We hope to see you weekly going forward.