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Lavender Lemonade with Raw Sugar

Sweet, a little tart, and lightly floral, lavender lemonade with raw sugar is a refreshing warm weather drink. It’s great for entertaining or just to keep on hand for those warm summer afternoons.

I love lavender lemonade. Our favorite brunch spot has it in the summer time but the best lavender lemonade I have ever had has to be the at Tupelo Honey. We went to Tupelo Honey for brunch the last day of a weekend away celebrating our ten year wedding anniversary and everything was so delicious. Jordan and I both more lavender lemonade to go on our way out along with their cookbook because it was that good!

pitcher of lavender lemonade

We love lavender lemonade so much we bought lavender plants and a Meyer lemon tree to plant next to our deck. The kids have named her Mirabel and lovingly check on her daily. It will be a few years before Mirabel produces lemons so in the mean time I am still grabbing bags of Meyer Lemons at Trader Joes every chance I get!

On the last day of the kids spring break we made a giant pitcher of this homemade lavender lemonade to sip through the afternoon. The kids alternated between the trampoline and the sprinkler while I steeped lavender and raw sugar, and Jordan juiced a bag of Meyer lemons.

The end result was this refreshing spin on homemade lemonade. Lightly floral and not too sweet that is perfect for entertaining. It is spring the season of bridal showers, baby showers, Mother’s day and the Kentucky derby and this lavender lemonade with raw sugar recipe will definitely be our go to!

Lavender Lemonade with raw sugar ingredients and supplies.

Ingredients:

Lavender: freshly picked and rinsed lavender flowers or dried lavender. We are have lavender in the garden at the moment but I also keep dried lavender on hand! Lavender pairs so well with lemon.

lavender and raw sugar in a measuring cup

Turbinado sugar: raw sugar is less refined so it still contains some of the molasses giving it a richer slightly caramel flavor.

Lemon Juice: the juice of 5-6 lemons, we used Meyer lemons but any Lemons will work!

lemon juice in a glass

Supplies:

Our favorite dried lavender is available on Amazon

A juicer is a must. I use ours almost daily.

Glass measuring cups. We juice the lemons straight into a glass measuring cup and also steep the lavender in the syrup in them.

A fine mesh sieve to strain the lavender buns our of the simple syrup.

A large pitcher for serving. Ours is from Ikea.

How do you make lavender lemonade with raw sugar?

I like to steep the lavender in the simple syrup vs boiling it on the stove to prevent any bitterness.

If you are using fresh lavender blossoms trim the lavender flowers from the stems and place in the bottom of a small bowl or glass measuring cup. Add your sugar.

lavender and raw sugar steeping in hot water

Use your fingers to gently rub the lavender buds into the sugar to help extract some of the lavender oil.

If using dried lavender buds just add them in with the sugar.

Pour 2 cups of boiling water over the lavender sugar. Stir with a spoon until the sugar dissolves. Cover and allow the lavender to infuse the simple syrup for at least 10 minutes.

In the mean time juice your fresh lemons. It took us five Meyer lemons to get enough juice for a pitcher of lemonade.

Strain the lavender-infused simple syrup with a fine mesh sieve and pour into your pitcher.

Stir in the fresh lemon juice and 2 cups of cold water.

Taste and adjust to taste.

If making ahead wait to add your ice until just before serving.

Serve with fresh lemon slices and sprigs of lavender.

glass of lavender lemonade in a woman's hand

Can I make the Lavender Syrup in Advance?

You can prepare the lavender simple syrup in advance and keep it in a glass jar in your fridge for up to two weeks.The light floral flavor is also delicious for cocktails and in iced coffee!

Quick Tips for making perfect lavender lemonade with raw sugar

It can take some tinkering to get the balance of sweetness and tartness just right to match your tastes. Here are some tricks to get the balance just right:

  • If it is too sweet, or if the lavender is too strong add more lemon juice.
  • Add more simple syrup if the lemonade is too tart for your liking
  • When the lemonade is too strong add more chilled water and lots of ice.

Selecting culinary use lavender

French provence lavender or English lavender have the best floral flavor without being over powering.

Make sure you purchase culinary or food grade lavender. This is the one we get on Amazon.

Do not use lavender from the flower shop as it has likely been sprayed with pesticides.

What is Turbinado Sugar?

Turbinado or raw cane sugar is an unrefined sugar that has a large course texture making it the perfect toping for baked goods like Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread. It is amber brown in color and has a lightly caramel flavor.

raw sugar and lavender in a bowl

Substituting Raw Sugar

Raw honey is a great substitute for raw sugar and can be swapped at a 1:1 ratio. You can also fins honey that is already infused with lavender. If using lavender honey I don’t recommend adding more lavendar to your simple syrup. Granulated white sugar is so much sweeter use 3/4 cup per every 1 cup of raw sugar.

glass of lavender lemonade in a woman's hand
Yield: 1 pitcher

Lavender Lemonade with Raw Sugar

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes

Sweet, a little tart, and lightly floral, lavender lemonade is a refreshing warm weather drink. It's great for entertaining or just to keep on hand for those warm summer afternoons

Ingredients

  • 1 cup of lemon juice, 5-6 lemons
  • 1 cup of raw sugar
  • 1 tablespoon dried lavender buds, double if using fresh lavender
  • 2 cups of boiling water
  • 2 cups of cold water

Instructions

  1. If you are using fresh lavender blossoms trim the lavender flowers from the stems and place in the bottom of a small bowl or glass measuring cup. Add your sugar.
  2. Use your fingers to gently rub the lavender buds into the sugar to help extract some of the lavender oil.
  3. If using dried lavender buds just add them in with the sugar.
  4. Pour 2 cups of boiling water over the lavender sugar. Stir with a spoon until the sugar dissolves. Cover and allow the lavender to infuse the simple syrup for at least 10 minutes.
  5. In the mean time juice your fresh lemons. It took us five Meyer lemons to get enough juice for a pitcher of lemonade.
  6. Strain the lavender-infused simple syrup with a fine mesh sieve and pour into your pitcher.
  7. Stir in the fresh lemon juice and 2 cups of cold water.
  8. Taste and adjust to taste. Add more lemon juice if it is too sweet. Add more sugar if you find it too tart. Add ice and more cups of water to reach your desired level of concentration.If making ahead wait to add your ice until just before serving.
  9. Serve with fresh lemon slices and sprigs of lavender.

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