Lavender lemonade didn’t sound good to me at first, but after a friend raved about it, I decided to keep an open mind. And I’m so glad I did! It’s perfect for porch sipping, but has also made the rounds at several local weddings and baby showers.
This recipe makes a really strong concentrate because it’s meant to be served over ice. You can add more water at the end if you want it less strong. See my notes for more ideas, but let me warn you that this is truly a gateway recipe because it opens the floodgates for all kinds of possibilities! And your kitchen will smell amazing while the lavender steeps.
Find the food grade dried lavender that I use on Amazon.
Sugar-free Lavender Lemonade
Ingredients
- 5 cups water divided
- 2/3 cup sweetener
- 3 tablespoons food grade dried lavender
- zest of 2 lemons optional
- 1 cup lemon juice
- liquid sweetener to taste, 10-12 drops
- ice for serving
Instructions
- On low heat mix 2 ½ cups of the water and sweetener in a 1.5-quart saucepan. Bring to a low boil for at least 1 minute.
- Place the lavender and lemon zest, if using) in a heatproof bowl or jar. Be sure to zest only the yellow outer edges. Any white pith will make your drink bitter. After the water mixture boils, pour it over the lavender and allow to steep for 20-25 minutes.
- While the lavender steeps, combine the remaining water and lemon juice in a pitcher.
- After the lavender and lemon zest have finished steeping, use a fine wire mesh strainer to remove the solids and pour it into the pitcher with the lemon juice and water. Squeeze any remaining water out of the lavender buds to get all of the flavor. The lavender lemonade will naturally turn pink. Add the liquid sweetener, if using. Serve over ice.
Notes
This recipe has become popular served at weddings or baby showers. If you’d like, you can add a bit of blue food coloring or a drop of red to make the pink more vibrant.
I used food grade lavender purchased online to avoid any pesticides. Anthony’s is the brand I used.
About the lavender taste. This can be trial and error. If you want a more intense flavor, use more lavender buds or allow the lavender to steep longer. At 25 minutes, we thought the lavender was a little too strong and at 20 minutes, too weak. For us, 22 minutes of steeping was perfect.
For the lemon juice, I’ve used fresh lemon juice and bottled lemon juice. My favorite version was when I used the zest and juice of two lemons, but it you only have bottled lemon juice, don’t let that stop you. Skipping the zest and fresh lemon juice is fine.
Consider adding 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract after the mixtures are combined in the pitcher. It makes the lavender a bit less pronounced, but it also makes the flavors richer.
The first step of the recipe is to create a lavender syrup. That syrup can be used to sweeten iced tea. It can also be used to make a buttercream frosting. Imagine that on a lemon cake! Also, you can also skip the lavender altogether and use the same recipe to make plain lemonade. Last, consider steeping only the lemon zest and adding that to plain water. Unlike lemon juice, the zest has no sugars and no carbs.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Sugar-free Lavender Lemonade
Amount per Serving
Calories
6.9
% Daily Value*
Sodium
9.8
mg
0
%
Carbohydrates
2.3
g
1
%
Fiber
0.3
g
1
%
Sugar
0.6
g
1
%
Protein
0.2
g
0
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Categories: Cooking Keto with Kristie, Recipes
