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If you’ve ever wondered what is Pink Lemonade and what does it taste like? You’re in for a treat! This Pink Lemonade recipe is quick and easy to make with just 4 ingredients. It’s sweet and refreshing and screams of summer!   

Four clear glasses filled with pink lemonade. A small bowl filled with raspberries sits next to the glasses.

You’ll want to add this easy Pink Lemonade recipe to your collection of non-alcoholic drinks to make for special occasions.  It’s also a prefect drink to serve during warm summer months.Eight clear glass liquid measuring cups filled with lemon juice, water, honey and cranberry juice.

What is Pink Lemonade?

Pink lemonade is made with lemon juice, water, sugar (or honey) and either artificial coloring or added fruit juice like strawberry, raspberry, cranberry or pomegranate juice.  Only a small amount of juice is added to lemonade to add a splash of color but not to compete with the lemonade flavor.

What Flavor is Pink Lemonade?

Pink lemonade is made with the same ingredients used to make regular lemonade, except artificial coloring or fruit juice (strawberry, raspberry, cranberry or pomegranate juice) is added to regular lemonade to give it a pretty pink color and the name “Pink Lemonade”. So Pink Lemonade tastes almost identical to regular lemonade. 

Pink Lemonade Recipe

We use my honey lemonade as a base for this recipe, then we add a splash of unsweetened cranberry juice to give it a pink color.

  • Lemon Juice. Juice enough lemons so you have 1-1/2 cups lemon juice.  Strain lemon juice through fine mesh into the glass pitcher with honey syrup. 
  • Sweetener.  We use honey for this recipe rather than pure cane sugar, but you can use granulated sugar if you prefer. 
  • Water. Dilute with as much or as little water as you like for your desired level of sweetness and tartness.
  • Cranberry Juice.  Stir in a splash of unsweetened cranberry juice (I like RW Knudsen) to the glass or pitcher. It adds a pretty pink color to the lemonade, but doesn’t alter the flavor much.
  • Garnish. Garnish with fresh mint leaves, raspberries and lemon slices.

Find printable recipe with measurements below.

How to Make Pink Lemonade

This recipe for Pink Lemonade couldn’t be easier to make! We use just 4 ingredients and it comes together in about 10 minutes start to finish!

  • Juice Lemons – Juice enough lemons so you have 1/2 cup lemon juice.  
  • Make honey syrup – Pour one cup of room temperature water with honey in a large pitcher and stir with a wooden spoon until the honey dissolves. Alternatively, you can add the water and honey to a blender and blend until the honey has dissolved.  
  • Mix Ingredients –  Pour the lemon juice, remaining water and cranberry juice to the pitcher and stir. Adjust flavor by adding more water or honey for desired sweetness.
  • Serve – Chill in the refrigerator before serving. Serve over ice and garnish with lemon slices, raspberries and fresh mint leaves.

Four dinking glasses filled with rose colored drinks. A small bowl filled with raspberries sits next to the glasses.

How to Juice Lemons

Some lemons can be tougher to juice than others, and some lemons produce more juice than others. Here are a few tips and tricks on juicing lemons to get the most juice from them to add to all your favorite lemon recipes.

  1. With a lemon sitting on a countertop, press down hard with the palm of your hand and roll the lemon back and forth a few times. This helps to break the juice away from the pulp.
  2. Cut the lemon in half lengthwise if you’re juicing by hand. It’s easier to grip when cut lengthwise.
  3. Cut the lemon in half crosswise if you’re using a juicer or a reamer.
  4. Using a fork, poke the pulp a few times to loosen up the membranes to release the most juice.
  5. Use a reamer, juicer or a pair of cooking tongs to extract as much juice from the lemon as possible.

How Much Lemon Juice in One Lemon?

Want to know how much juice in a lemon? Well, the answer to that question depends on the size and ripeness of the lemon. The more ripe the lemon, the more juice it will likely produce. And obviously larger lemons will produce more juice than smaller lemons.

  • 1 small lemon will produce about 2-3 tablespoon (or 1-1.5 fluid ounces)
  • 1 medium lemon will produce about 3-4 tablespoons (or 2 fluid ounces)
  • 1 large lemon will produce about 4-5 tablespoons (or 2.5 fluid ounces)

How Many Lemons for 1 Cup Juice?

There are 16 tablespoons in 1 cup, so you’ll either need about 8 small lemons, 5 medium lemons, or 4 large lemons to get 1 cup of lemon juice.  I always buy a few extra lemons, just in case some of the lemons don’t produce much juice.

How To Store It

Store Pink Lemonade in a tall pitcher or sealed mason jars in the refrigerator for up to a week. You can also pour into ice cube trays to make flavored ice cubes to add to water or iced tea like I’ve done with these Arnold Palmer (Sweet Tea) Ice Cubes. Or you can pour into popsicle molds to make Strawberry Popsicles

Looking For More Summer Drink Recipes To Make?

Four glasses filled with pink lemonade. A small bowl of raspberries sits next to the glasses.
Yield: 4 servings

Pink Lemonade

Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes

What is Pink Lemonade vs Lemonade? What's the difference? This Pink Lemonade recipe is quick and easy to make with just 4 ingredients. It's sweet and refreshing and screams of summer!   

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (3-4 large lemons)
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cranberry juice
  • 1/2 cup honey or granulated sugar
  • 3 cups water
  • Ice
  • Lemon slices, raspberries and mint for garnish

Instructions

Juice lemons

  1. With a lemon sitting on a countertop, press down hard with the palm of your hand and roll the lemon back and forth a few times. This helps to break the juice away from the pulp.
  1. Cut the lemon in half lengthwise if you're juicing by hand. It's easier to grip when cut lengthwise.
  2. Cut the lemon in half crosswise if you're using a juicer or a reamer.
  3. Using a fork, poke the pulp a few times to loosen up the membranes to release the most juice.
  4. Use a reamer, juicer or a pair of cooking tongs to extract as much juice from the lemon as possible.

Mix Ingredients

Add the honey and one cup water to a pitcher and stir to dissolve the honey. Pour in the rest of the water, lemon juice and cranberry juice. Add ice to pitcher or to individual glasses. Garnish with lemon slices, raspberries and sprigs of mint.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 154Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 10mgCarbohydrates: 42gFiber: 1gSugar: 39gProtein: 1g

theharvestkitchen.com attempts to provide accurate information, however, this nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. The nutritional information provided comes from online sources and calculations. See full disclaimer on About page.

© The Harvest kitchen
Cuisine: American