A syrup made from sugar, water and the zest and juice of both lemons and oranges, then diluted to taste. Three quarts, twelve servings.
The syrup keeps in the fridge, so you mix each glass as you pour rather than making a pitcher that sits.
Steep the zest for a full hour
Two tablespoons each of lemon and orange zest go into the warm syrup with the juices, then it sits covered for an hour before straining.
This is where the flavour comes from and it is what separates this from lemonade made with juice alone.
Citrus flavour lives in the oils in the peel rather than in the juice. Juice is mostly acidity and sugar. An hour in warm syrup extracts those oils properly, and the finished drink tastes of orange and lemon rather than simply tasting sour and sweet.
Covered matters, since the oils are volatile and an uncovered bowl loses a good share of them to the air.
Dissolve the sugar before anything else
A cup and three quarters of sugar with two and a half cups of water, cooked and stirred over medium heat until fully dissolved.
Fully dissolved is the standard to hit. Undissolved sugar settles to the bottom of the jug and the drink tastes progressively sweeter as you pour from it.
Rub a little between your fingers to check. Smooth means done, gritty means keep going.
Cool it slightly before the zest and juice go in. Boiling hot syrup poured over fresh citrus cooks it and gives a duller, more marmalade-like flavour.
Strain it, then chill it
Through a sieve to remove the zest, then refrigerated until cold.
The zest has given everything it has after an hour and leaving it in makes the syrup progressively bitter, since the white pith attached to grated zest keeps releasing.
Chilling before serving matters more than it seems. Room temperature syrup mixed with water and poured over ice melts a good deal of that ice immediately, and the drink comes out weak.
Equal parts syrup and water
To serve, fill glasses or a pitcher with equal amounts of the fruit syrup and water, then add ice.
One to one is the starting ratio and it is worth adjusting to taste. More water gives a lighter, more refreshing drink. Less gives something closer to a cordial.
Mixing per glass rather than making up the full three quarts at once is the practical advantage of this method. The syrup keeps for a week or more refrigerated, where diluted lemonade goes flat and separates within a day or two.
Ten lemons and five oranges
A cup and a half of each juice, which is roughly what those quantities give.
The two to one ratio of lemons to oranges is doing something specific. Lemon is sharply acidic and orange is sweeter and softer. Equal parts would make something too mild to read as lemonade. Twice as many lemons keeps the acidity while the orange rounds it off.
Zest the fruit before juicing it. Zesting a squeezed lemon half is unpleasant work and you will get less.
Serving
Over plenty of ice, and it holds well for a crowd because the syrup is made ahead.
Around 136 calories per cup. Sparkling water in place of still turns it into something closer to a soda, which is worth trying. <p>A slice of lemon or orange in the glass is the obvious garnish and it also keeps releasing a little more oil as it sits. ## Keeping the syrup Covered in the refrigerator, the strained syrup holds a week to ten days. It also freezes well in an ice cube tray, which gives you portions to dilute one glass at a time over a couple of months.
Adjusting the sweetness
A cup and three quarters of sugar is on the sweeter side once diluted one to one. Reducing to a cup and a half makes a sharper drink, and you can always add more water at the glass rather than less sugar at the pan.
Orange Lemonade
Description
Homemade orange lemonade built on a zest-steeped citrus syrup, mixed with water to taste at serving.
Ingredients:
Instructions
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In a large saucepan combine the sugar and water and cook, stirring over medium heat, until the sugar is fully dissolved. Cool slightly
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Stir in the citrus zest and both juices. Cover and let stand 1 hour
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Strain the syrup to remove the zest, then refrigerate covered until cold
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To serve, fill glasses or a pitcher with equal amounts of fruit syrup and cold water. Add ice and serve.
Note
Nutrition per cup from source: 136 calories, 35g carbohydrates, 33g sugar, 1mg sodium. Steep the zest a full hour, covered, since citrus oils are volatile. Cool the syrup slightly before adding the zest and juice; boiling syrup dulls the fresh citrus flavour. Strain the zest out afterwards or the syrup turns bitter. Chill the syrup before serving so it does not melt the ice. Zest the fruit before juicing. The syrup keeps a week to ten days refrigerated, or freezes in an ice cube tray for a couple of months.
