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Sparkling strawberry lemonade: Drink of summer

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Sparkling strawberry lemonade on a wood table with frozen strawberries and cut lemon.

Fizzy water with strawberries & lemons in an Atlas jar with white straw. Frozen strawberries and cut lemons in background.

You know how every year there’s a song of the summer? Something featherweight and carefree that makes you want to splash in the pool or drive over empty highways with the windows rolled down? Well, this sparkling strawberry lemonade has been our household’s beverage equivalent.

It’s refreshingly light, bright, and a cinch to make. It’s our drink of the summer.

This past weekend David and I went to the farmers market. And I saw cherry watermelon lemonade for sale. I like cherries, watermelon, and lemons. It sounded like the ideal way to break the day’s humidity.

With the first sip of that Kool-Aid style lemonade, I realized it was a bad idea. Three dollars wasted.

That kind of scenario seems to play out at least once every summer. Whether I’m at a carnival, fair, or music fest, I give in to the draw of a lemonade stand… and regret it immediately.

I wonder if my sugar expectations are just different from people who still drink things like Coke or Pepsi. Maybe that’s what they want.

Personally, I want the beverage version of a sundress – airy and breezy.

Cadry holding a Ball jar with sparkling strawberry lemonade.

Cadry drinking a sparkling strawberry lemonade in a Bell jar.

Unlike the sugar-laden lemonade you’d find at a roadside stand, this effervescent sparkling strawberry lemonade doesn’t coat your mouth with syrup or make you feel like you’ve had dessert in a glass.

There’s no mountain of sugar to stake your straw into. It’s refreshingly easy to drink – glass after glass.

(In fact, I wavered over whether to name it sparkling water with lemon instead, because the strawberry and lemon flavors aren’t overpowering or cloying.)

Because of its light, crisp flavor, it’s a drink that doesn’t wear out its welcome.

The lemonade is made with sparkling or carbonated water for fizz. Frozen strawberries take the place of some of the ice in the drink, helping it to keep everything cool.

Cut lemon on a cutting board with frozen strawberries and sparkling strawberry lemonade.

Frozen strawberries in a stone bowl with cut lemons and sparkling strawberry lemonade.

David and I have been drinking this fizzy lemonade for a few weeks now. We’ve really been craving it.

After the first drink, we refill with more sparkling water, but we don’t add any more agave syrup. As the strawberries thaw, they release more of their own inherent sweetness, flavor, and pink hue.

Sometimes we do add an additional squeeze of lemon, depending on our moods.

Bring a glass to your next summer outing, and make lemonade stand regret a thing of the past.

Sparkling water with lemons & strawberries on a wood table with frozen strawberries and cut lemon.

Sparkling strawberry lemonade in an Atlas jar with white straw. Frozen strawberries and cut lemons in background.

Sparkling strawberry lemonade

This refreshing sparkling strawberry lemonade quenches the thirst without being overly sweet.
5 from 2 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Beverage
Cuisine: American
Keyword: drink, lemonade, sparkling water
Prep Time: 1 minute
Cook Time: 1 minute
Total Time: 2 minutes
Servings: 1 people
Calories: 13kcal
Author: Cadry Nelson

Ingredients

  • 3 - 4 frozen strawberries
  • A few ice cubes
  • 2 wedges of lemon about 2 teaspoons of lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon agave syrup or your preferred vegan liquid sweetener (Optional)
  • 12 ounces sparkling water

Instructions

  • Put frozen strawberries and ice cubes into drinking glass. Squeeze two lemon wedges and put them into the glass. Add agave syrup (if using) and sparkling water. Stir with a straw or long spoon to combine ingredients and dissolve the agave syrup. Taste & adjust for your preferences, if necessary.

Notes

After you finish the first glass, add another serving of sparkling water on top of the remaining strawberries and lemon wedges. As the strawberries thaw, they provide even more strawberry flavor & sweetness.

Nutrition

Calories: 13kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Sodium: 72mg | Potassium: 61mg | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 23.2mg | Calcium: 17mg
Tried this recipe?Tag @cadryskitchen on Instagram and hashtag it #cadryskitchen!

David holding lemonade in a jar with white straw.

David holding a jar of sparkling lemonade with a white straw.

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Posted On: July 10, 2017
Comment: Leave a Comment

About Cadry

Cadry Nelson is the writer, photographer, and recipe creator behind Cadry’s Kitchen, a vegan food & lifestyle blog started in 2009. Through approachable recipes, vegan travel guides, and down-to-earth discussions on the social aspects of being vegan, Cadry shows that living a vegan lifestyle is deliciously uncomplicated. Cadry has been featured on NBC News, Mashable, Today, Reader's Digest, Yahoo, Delish, Shape, and Huffington Post.

Comments

  1. David Busch says

    July 10, 2017 at 9:40 am

    5 stars
    Step off, Justin Timberlake! This is the sensation of the summer. 🙂

    Reply
    • Cadry says

      July 12, 2017 at 4:16 pm

      Justin needs to bring it on down to Veganville! 😀

      Reply
  2. Bianca Phillips says

    July 10, 2017 at 2:49 pm

    YES!!! Using frozen berries as ice cubes is SO SMART! And I love sparkling water. I need to try this. I hate wasting calories that could be used for pizza or beer on sugary drinks. This sounds perfect.

    Reply
    • Cadry says

      July 12, 2017 at 4:21 pm

      I’m totally with you on the pizza! I usually drink cucumber water all day, but having something fizzy is a fun change for summer. You’ll have to give it a go!

      Reply
  3. Shell says

    July 13, 2017 at 8:50 am

    I’m not a lemonade fan, but this is something I could get used to! I think I would love this! It looks so light and refreshing!

    Reply
    • Cadry says

      July 13, 2017 at 10:45 am

      How do you feel about lemons in general? If you like them, you should definitely give this a whirl. If not, you could always try using a squeeze of orange instead. (I know how you feel about freshly squeezed orange juice!) I served this to my parents & David’s parents recently (on separate occasions), and they went crazy for it. It’s so simple, but really refreshing!

      Reply
      • Shell says

        July 18, 2017 at 3:30 pm

        I’m fine with lemons in general, but I do love a good squeezed orange! I bet there is a lot of mixing and matching you could do with this recipe.

        Reply

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Welcome

Hi, I'm Cadry Nelson. I'm the recipe creator, writer, and photographer behind Cadry's Kitchen.

Cadry's Kitchen is a vegan food & travel blog. It features plant-based comfort food classics that are ready in about 30 minutes.

You can also find travelogues & recommendations on where to eat vegan while traveling - even in unlikely places!

Contact me at cadryskitchen@gmail.com.

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