Watermelon Basil Lemonade – Homemade lemonade sweetened with basil sugar and fresh watermelon juice.
There are a few things as synonymous with summer as lemonade. A glass of cold lemonade can make even the muggiest, humid day feel better. I love making my lemonade from scratch. Doing so allows me the freedom to try out new flavors – like this Peach Lemonade.
I love using watermelon in drinks – like this sangria and this margarita. Watermelon is also major symbol of summer so it’s only natural that I pair it with lemonade. And to make it even more complex in flavor, I added in some fresh basil.
Without further ado, here is my Watermelon Basil Lemonade!
Tips & Tricks
- Blend watermelon until smooth. To ensure the watermelon puree has very little pulp, you must blend it for at least a minute.
- Break the basil into the sugar. To get the most flavor from the basil, it is broken into the sugar with a wooden spoon.
- Don’t skip the salt. With a drink as sweet and sour as this lemonade, you need a little salt to balance it all out.
Watermelon Basil Lemonade
Servings: 10 servings
Ingredients
- ¼ cup basil leaves
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 cup fresh lemon juice
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup ice
- 3 cups pureed watermelon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- sliced lemon
Instructions
- Add basil leaves and sugar to a pitcher. Using a wooden spoon, mash the basil into the sugar until the leaves are in small pieces. Add the lemon juice and stir together to help the sugar dissolve. Let it sit for 5 minutes.
- Add water, ice, salt, and watermelon puree and stir together. Add slices of lemon to the pitcher.
- Serve in glasses over ice.
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More recipes you’ll love:
Watermelon Sangria
Peach Lemonade
Strawberry Cucumber Limeade
Watermelon and basil are a match made in heaven. This drink turned out wonderfully!
I love lemonade and the addition of the watermelon was refreshing and very hydrating. It was perfect.
This drink looks incredibly refreshing and perfect for summer and seems like a great way to cool down amidst this hot weather.
This drink speaks summer. The flavor combination was so refreshing and delicious. It looks pretty also. It made the perfect drink for the luncheon I hosted.
Perfect drink for summer! My kids had fun helping me make this AND drink it!
This cocktail is so refreshing and perfect for summer. I love the combination of watermelon. basil and lemonade! Thanks for this recipe- I’ll be making this often!
The flavor profile in this watermelon basil lemonade will have you doing the happy dance. The sweet, sour and earthy flavors take me places where I feel wonderful. Thank you for sharing.
This is an incredible lemonade! The combination of watermelon, lemon and basil is so refreshing and unique, I’ll be sipping this all summer long!
Refreshing and flavorful lemonade recipe. Thanks for sharing.
I have an abundance of basil growing in my garden, but I was so tired of making pesto that I decided to use some in this watermelon basil lemonade. It was such a recipe! The tartness of the lemonade and the herbaceous basil combined perfectly with the watermelon!
Such an excellent flavour combination! I have used it in a salad but never thought about lemonade. I had a large amount of watermelon this weekend and this recipe was the perfect way to enjoy it.
This is such a delicious twist on lemonade!
This looks amazing and such a treat! Thank you!
This was the most refreshing drink I’ve ever had, it’s going to be on repeat for all my summer bbq’s!
I was just checking my basil in the garden. I need to buy some watermelon and give this a try. A refreshing drink for a hot summer day.