This quick and easy Lavender Lemonade is the perfect way to enjoy your lemonade in STYLE! Add a little bourbon, gin, or vodka-- and you've got yourself a light summer cocktail!
Each spring, I go a little crazy with my tiny, but ever-expanding container garden.
What started out years ago as two herbs soon grew to four.
Then, I added a few more, and then a few more, and before I knew it-- my entire mini-deck is covered in plants.
Mainly, I grow mint (for mint tea, mint simple syrup, and chocolate mint ice cream), catnip (for catnip tea), citronella (for citronella syrup), and chives (for chive butter and chive blossom vinegar).
And each year, I've tried to grow lavender.
Unsuccessfully.
Happily, this pretty, fragrant, fabulous plant is also available at the store.
Dried. Ready to use in the kitchen.
No gardening skills needed!
This lavender lemonade is cold, flavor-packed, refreshing, and perfect for spring and summer.
Where Can I Buy Dried Lavender?
Look for culinary-grade dried lavender petals with the dried herbs at the grocery store.
Alternately, grow your own lavender, dry it, and use that. And then email me, and tell me what I'm doing wrong with my lavender plants!
How to Make Lavender Lemonade
To make Lavender Lemonade, start with an herb-infused simple syrup.
Simply simmer the lavender with a little sugar and water, strain the lavender out, and set the syrup aside to cool.
While it's cooling, juice your lemons, add water, and then add the syrup.
Making Hard Lemonade
If you're wondering, because I definitely was when I made it-- Yes! This is delicious as hard lemonade.
It blends well with bourbon, gin or vodka!
I tried all three. For science.
Serve this lemonade in glasses with ice, and top it all off with some fresh mint leaves.
Want more SUMMER DRINKS? Try these:
Want more LAVENDER recipe ideas? Try these:
- Strawberry Lemonade with Lavender
- Bourbon Sour with Lavender
- Granita Recipe with Lavender, Berries, + Whipped Ricotta
Lavender Lemonade
Ingredients
Lavender Simple Syrup:
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons dried lavender petals, culinary grade
Lemonade:
- 6-8 lemons (approx. 1 cup fresh lemon juice), plus 1 more for garnish (sliced and deseeded)
- 4 cups water
- optional: handful fresh mint leaves
Optional Hard Lemonade Add-Ins:
- 9-12 ounces bourbon, gin, or vodka, depending on desired alcohol content (optionally- add 1 ½ - 2 ounces alcohol per 8oz of lemonade)
Instructions
- Make simple syrup by adding sugar, lavender and 1 cup water to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then simmer about 5 minutes. Pour syrup through a mesh sieve into a measuring cup (or other spouted container), and allow it to cool.
- Meanwhile, juice lemons until you have about 1 cup of juice. Pour juice into pitcher, and add 4 cups of cold water.
- Add half the cooled syrup, and taste the lemonade. Add the remaining syrup if desired.Tip: Store any leftover syrup in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a year.
- Serve in a pitcher, or in glasses filled with ice. Garnish glasses with fresh mint.
- If serving hard, add liquor to pitcher, or add to individual glasses as serving.
Dawn @ Girl Heart Food says
Funny thing about herb gardens how you keep adding and adding. So fun, though. Awesome to use things from your own garden...makes it extra special. Hubby just picked up a lavender herb recently and can't wait to try. Love the use of lavender in a classic Summer drink. This lemonade looks delicious!
champagne-tastes says
Thanks Dawn! Let's keep growing our gardens and drinking lemonade 😀
Stine Mari says
We just have to sacrifice for science sometimes. I might need to do the same! After MONTHS of looking through stores and the internet I have finally found dried lavender (not everyone ships to Norway, and when they do, the customs are stopping it - but one went through and I am EXCITED) So, lavender was bought primarily for lavender lemonade, and I can't wait to try it. Yum!
champagne-tastes says
Yay!!! Let me know when you try it!! (And yes- sacrifice for science and try bourbon, vodka, and gin to see which you like best hehe)
Karen Affholter says
Putting this on my must try list for summer!
Sarah Trenalone says
I hope you love it! 🙂
MK Bearden says
Is it possible to use fresh lavender flowers to make the lavender simple syrup or do they HAVE to be dried?
I have been enjoying all of your recipes and looking forward to the opportunity to make several of them. Thank you.
Alisha Trenalone says
We haven't tried it with fresh lavender but that should work! Dried lavender will be stronger than fresh, so you might need to use a little bit more than the recipe calls for. You could also try using the same amount but steeping it longer. Let us know how it goes!
-Alisha at Champagne Tastes
Jen says
What variety of mint would be best in this drink?
Alisha Trenalone says
We've tried this with sweet mint and spearmint, but most varieties of mint would make a great garnish for this lemonade... it's so fun to try out the different types of mint in things!
-Alisha at Champagne Tastes