Pickle Lemonade

Ingredients

• 7 organic lemons (large, at room temperature)
• 0.666 cup granulated sugar
• 3 cup filtered water (chilled)
• 1 cup dill pickle juice (1 to 1¼ cups, to taste; use refrigerated dill-flavored brine like Grillo's)
• pickle spears (for garnish)
• ice (for serving)

Steps

1. 1

   Thinly slice 1 lemon, discard the seeds, and set aside for garnish.

2. 2

   Roll the remaining 6 lemons firmly against your counter top before juicing them in order to extract as much juice as possible.

3. 3

   Quarter the lemons, then squeeze enough of the lemons into a measuring cup to get 1 cup of lemon juice. A citrus juicer may be helpful here.

4. 4

   Add the squeezed lemon peels and any unsqueezed lemon quarter pieces to a large jar, such as an 8-cup Mason jar, a wide pitcher, or a large bowl.

5. 5

   Add the sugar to the lemon peel pieces in the jar.

6. 6

   Using a wooden spoon or a muddler, muddle the sugar and lemon peels together until the sugar has mostly dissolved, about 1 to 2 minutes.

7. 7

   Add the 1 cup of lemon juice to the jar.

8. 8

   Cover and shake vigorously (or stir, if your vessel doesn’t have a lid) to ensure the sugar has fully dissolved.

9. 9

   Add the chilled filtered water to the jar.

10. 10

    Add the pickle juice to taste, starting with 1 cup and increasing up to 1¼ cups if desired.

11. 11

    Shake or stir to mix the ingredients thoroughly.

12. 12

    Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean pitcher or jar to remove the peels and pulp.

13. 13

    To serve, pour into glasses over plenty of ice and garnish each glass with a reserved lemon slice and a pickle spear.

Notes

Storage: Refrigerate for up to 3 days. Tip: When choosing pickles, look for refrigerated dill-flavored ones (like Grillo’s) for brighter flavors. Avoid sweet bread and butter pickles or those with heavy garlic, as they can overpower the balance of lemon and sugar. Depending on your pickle choice, you may need to adjust the sugar and lemon ratios.

Nutrition per serving

• drink
• beverage
• summer
• pickle juice
• lemonade
• refreshing
• vegetarian
• gluten-free