Coconut Sugared Lemonade

Coconut Sugared Lemonade

Spring is just around the corner, but here in Orange County, it already feels like June. Temperatures were at a high of 86 degrees last week. Its February, mind you. Where I'm from, February still means mittens and galoshes.
To beat the feels-like-summer heat, Alex and I got our lemonade on.

Since last summer's annual camping trip, he'd been raving about this awesome maple syrup sweetend lemonade, and we knew we were ready to try and recreate it. Except...we were out of maple syrup. So we started experimenting.
And now, we have a new favorite drink.

The secret is in the simple syrup. By dissolving the sugar first, you don't have any sugar sinkin' to the bottom and changing the flavor of the lemonade. And the coconut sugar, naturally brown, adds a maple-y flavor without being too sweet. It looks more like iced tea, but its tastes like heaven.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup organic coconut sugar
1 cup water (for simple syrup)
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
4 cups water (to dilute)

To Prepare:
To create a simple syrup, combine coconut sugar and one cup water in a small saucepan. Heat on low, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves completely (about 5 minutes). Do not bring the mixture to a boil.
As the simple syrup is cooking, grab a citrus squeezer and several fresh lemons, usually about three large or 4-5 small ones.
Pour freshly squeezed lemon juice into a large pitcher.
Once your simple syrup is ready, pour it into the pitcher with the lemon juice. Add 4 cups of cold water, to dilute. Stir to combine.
Serve over ice, & enjoy! 

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This lemonade recipe is easy to multiply for large gatherings and takes about 10 minutes to prep, start to finish.
I bet it would even be good with a sprig of fresh mint.
If you're looking for more delicious (and healthy!) spring drinks, try our Lavender Lemonade or Peach Ginger Smoothie! 
But the best combo for this deliciously sweet lemonade? Raw Carrot Cake with Lemon Cashew Creme...yum!