I came into a small lemon fortune this week so I decided to make some refreshing lemonade after work. I’m not a fan of most lemonades, probably because they come in either concentrated form or as a mysterious powder. They always seem to have a funky aftertaste and taste fake. Homemade lemonade is far superior! You can skip the simple syrup step and just mix together the raw sugar, water and lemon juice, but I prefer the smooth texture of simple syrup over grainy sugar.

A tip for juicing lemons: Before cutting the lemon in half, roll it firmly on a hard surface back and forth several times.

Lemonade (serves 4-6)
Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
5-6 cups water, divided
1 cup lemon juice, from 5-6 lemons
lemon slices and wedges, for garnish

In a small saucepan, dissolve sugar in 1 cup of water. Chill mixture in the fridge while you juice your lemons.

In a pitcher, combine lemon juice, simple syrup (the sugar/water mixture) and 4 cups of water. Add the additional cup of water to taste. Serve over ice with lemon slices and wedges. I added a sugar rim as well to make it a bit more fun!