Strawberry Lemonade Sparkling Drink (Print Version)

A lively blend of strawberries, lemon, and sparkling water, ideal for a cool summer beverage.

# Ingredient List:

→ Fruit

01 - 1 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
02 - 1 lemon, sliced for garnish

→ Juices

03 - 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice from about 2 lemons

→ Sweetener

04 - 1/4 cup granulated sugar or 3 tablespoons honey or maple syrup to taste

→ Liquids

05 - 2 cups cold sparkling water
06 - 1/2 cup cold water

→ Ice

07 - 1 cup ice cubes approximately 8 to 10 cubes

# Steps:

01 - Combine strawberries, lemon juice, sugar or honey or maple syrup, and 1/2 cup cold water in a blender. Blend until smooth.
02 - Pour the blended mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a large pitcher to remove seeds and pulp.
03 - Add ice to the pitcher, then pour in sparkling water. Stir gently to combine all ingredients.
04 - Taste the mixture and adjust sweetness if needed by adding more sugar or honey to reach desired flavor profile.
05 - Pour into glasses filled with extra ice and garnish with lemon slices and whole strawberries if desired.

# Helpful Hints:

01 -
  • It comes together in 10 minutes flat, so you can actually enjoy your guests instead of being stuck in the kitchen.
  • Fresh strawberries and real lemon juice taste unmistakably better than anything from a bottle, and people always notice the difference.
  • The sparkling water makes it feel fancy and celebratory without any fuss or ingredients you can't pronounce.
02 -
  • Straining really matters—skipping this step leaves you with gritty seeds in your teeth, which nobody enjoys, so don't take the shortcut.
  • Add the sparkling water last and stir gently, because aggressive stirring kills the carbonation and you lose that refreshing fizz that makes the drink sing.
03 -
  • Macerate your strawberries with sugar for thirty minutes if you want an intensified, almost syrupy strawberry flavor that makes people ask what you did differently.
  • Save a few whole strawberries to float as garnish—they're edible at the end and they catch the light beautifully in the glass.
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