Cranberry Lemonade is a tasty and refreshing drink with a perfect mix of sweetness and sourness provided by cranberries. Spread holiday cheer this season with this gorgeous pink lemonade drink.
About Cranberry Lemonade
Cranberry lemonade is one of my favorite lemonades. It hardly takes a few minutes to prepare this drink. When lemonade is combined with the natural flavorings of any fruit, it takes the drink to the next level.
If you love fruit-based drinks then definitely check out the following recipes - pink raspberry lemonade, sparkling virgin mojito, refreshing Mango Margherita, and Carnival favorite Orange Shakeup!
For cranberry recipe ideas check cranberry frangipane tart and cranberry pesto pasta.
Cranberries, in particular, provide the right amount of sweet fruity notes and tartness to the drink and also gives it a gorgeous pink color. This homemade cranberry lemonade beats any store-bought counterparts, hands down, both in taste and visual appeal.
As cranberries are available during the holiday season, preparing and serving this lemonade drink for your upcoming holiday and New Year parties make perfect sense. And if you use premium frozen cranberries, you can prepare this any time of the year! This drink is also a crowd favorite during game nights and tailgating events.
The cranberry lemonade syrup can be used to prepare both mocktails (as shown in the post below) or cocktails such as Cranberry Mojito, Cosmopolitan, Cranberry Mule, Cranberry Margaritas, Sex on the Beach, and Vodka & Cranberry, among others.
The pink color of the drink (cocktail/mocktail version) makes it an ideal drink option for cozy romantic datenights or during Valentine's Day!
While this recipe calls for adding sugar as a sweetener, you may as well substitute it with other natural sweeteners like honey or agave nectar, or you may feel free to skip it.
Ingredients
- Fresh or Frozen Cranberries is one of the main ingredients in the recipe. If unavailable, feel free to replace them with raspberries, strawberries, etc.
- Water and Sugar in the ratio of 2:1 is used to prepare homemade cranberry syrup.
- Freshly extracted Lemon juice is an absolute must when preparing lemonade. If lemons are unavailable, replace them with the same amount of fresh lime juice.
- Sparkling or Still water based on your liking. I love to use sparkling water.
Steps to Prepare Cranberry Lemonade
Step 1: In a pan on medium-high, combine fresh/frozen cranberries, water, and sugar and bring to a boil. Then continue to simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.
Step 2: Pass this sweetened cranberry mix through a sieve and extract all the liquid, leaving only fibrous portions and seeds behind. This cranberry syrup can be stored up to 2 months in the refrigerator.
Step 3: Add freshly squeezed lemon juice to the extracted cranberry syrup and let it cool to room temperature. Cranberry lemonade concentrate is now ready. This can be stored in the refrigerator for at least one week.
Step 4: Add cranberry syrup and cold sparkling water (or still water) in a 1:1 ratio into a glass filled with ice. Serve Cranberry Lemonade with a slice of lemon and a few torn leaves of mint or basil, and enjoy!
Expert Chef Tips
- You can use herbs like rosemary or spices like cinnamon to infuse the cranberry syrup with its fragrance. Add it while simmering cranberries in sugar syrup.
- You can easily combine (or completely substitute) cranberries with strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, etc., for adding a delicious twist to the lemonade.
FAQs
Don't throw it away! Refrigerate it in airtight containers, and you can use them for baking rolls (similar to fig rolls), bread, cakes, tarts, etc.
Yes. You can store the syrup in the refrigerator for up to 2 months. You can add freshly squeezed lemon juice and sparkling water, along with the syrup just before serving.
Yes. You can make a number of cocktails using cranberry syrup. From Mojitos, to Cosmopolitans, Mules, Margaritas, Sex on the Beach, or simple yet classic Vodka & Cranberry, the options are endless on how to incorporate cranberries to make delicious cocktails or mocktails.
The recipe used regular granulated sugar. But you can natural sweeteners like honey, agave nectar, etc. as a substitute.
More Cranberry Recipes to Love
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Recipe card
Best Cranberry Lemonade (with Real Cranberries)
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups Cranberries fresh/frozen
- 3 cups Water
- 1.5 cups Sugar
- 1.5 cups Lemon juice
- 3 cups Sparkling water cold
- Ice cubes plenty
Instructions
Step 1
- In a pan on medium-high heat, add frozen cranberries, water, sugar and bring to a boil.1.5 cups Cranberries, 3 cups Water, 1.5 cups Sugar
- Once it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Pass this sweetened cranberry mix through a sieve and using a spoon extract all the liquid, leaving behind only fibrous cranberry pulp and seeds.
- This can be stored up to 2 months in the refrigerator.
Step 2
- To the extracted cranberry syrup, add freshly squeezed lemon juice and let it cool to room temperature.1.5 cups Lemon juice
- Cranberry lemonade concentrate is now ready. This can be stored in the refrigerator for at least one week.
Step 3
- To serve, add cranberry syrup and cold sparkling water (or cold still water) in a 1:1 ratio into a glass filled with ice.3 cups Sparkling water
- Cranberry Lemonade is now ready. Serve with a slice of lemon, a few torn leaves of mint or basil, and enjoy!
Notes
Expert Chef Tips
- Add herbs like rosemary or spices like cinnamon to infuse the cranberry syrup with its fragrance. Add it while simmering cranberries in sugar syrup.
- You can easily combine (or completely substitute) cranberries with strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, etc., for adding a delicious twist to the lemonade.
Nutrition
Cape Cod Select originally sponsored this post in December 2016, but the content has been modified effective May 2023.
Angie@Angie's Recipes
Not a fan of lemonade, but I definitely will drink this because of those gorgeous cranberries!
Nava K
Gosh! salivating here. This is so good.
Emma @ Bake Then Eat
Lovely drink Kushi, Merry Christmas to you and your family 🙂
Sarah
I'm a little confused about how much this makes. What is the actual number of OUNCES it yields? I'm trying to decide how much to increase the recipe for a party, but don't want to end up with way too much either. I need to make one to two gallons.
Kushi
This recipe yields 3 cups of cranberry-lemonade concentrate. While serving, we add 3 cups of sparkling water, and pour this over glasses filled with ice. So it can serve up to 12 people. Hope this helps.
Sharmila - The Happie Friends Potpourri Corner
OMG Such a lovely and refreshing drink.. Very well capatured!!
Pavani
That is such a festive looking lemonade. I'm going to make this for my kids soon. Thanks for sharing.