Tuesday means market day homemade lemonade and, when spending our summer holidays in Greece, we always look forward to Tuesdays (or rather I do). Tuesdays is market day. Which means homemade lemonade. The thought of buying super fresh fruit and vegetables straight from a market stall that are oozing with flavour, fills me with such joy and I just tingle with the thought of it! Being able to make super fresh homemade lemonade on a hot summer’s day is such fun and also something to get the kids involved with!
Scroll down to the video if you want to watch how to make it or jump to the recipe as well.
The homemade lemonade recipe is a family favourite and you can read more here or just keep scrolling for the recipe down at the bottom of the post!
Market Day in Greece buying lemons to make homemade lemonade
Hearing the Greeks shouting out promoting their wares they have for sale, I am in seventh Heaven! The thought of buying those extra large lemons that are always ripe and super juicy to make our fresh batch of homemade lemonade fills me with such joy! Particularly when you think of the typical size of supermarket sized lemons in the UK – those are tiny.
So be sure to buy the largest lemons you can find as this recipe needs four large lemons to make one litre.
The brood however have other thoughts to market day. Sadly the kids have described the market as boring, too far to walk and very very windy when the stall owners wrestle to tame their canopies to stop them from blowing away. A big gust of wind blows dust into your eyes and it is very very hot.
And yes it can be like this, but there has been many a time, many a summer when the wind is not blowing. The sun has been shining, the sky extra blue, with barely a cloud in sight, the air warm as the gentle breeze gently blows over your bare skin. It can be dreamy the summers in Greece. Often in June it is already too hot to wear much more than a skimpy dress or t-shirt and shorts, and anything clingy is just too much, too hot!
When it is hot, and I mean dry heat hot, I don’t know if you have noticed, but distances seem to be so much greater and the heat is such a drain on energy levels. You have to pace yourself, walk slower, start the day earlier when it is still cool enough to operate / function normally. It’s best to take a drink with you or at least stop off on the way back, maybe sit down if the kids are very little and have a drink, rest up and then carry on again. The energy seems to evaporate away through every pore as you walk in the heat.
In the winter time whenever we have visited, it is just a quick stroll from the apartment to the market, but once the summer comes in Greece, it seems at least twice as far.
Why I love buying fruit and veg fresh from the market
So back to the market, the task at hand: to buy fresh lemons to make delicious homemade lemonade. And this is true in any country, but it makes sense, if you get to the market early enough (and I mean 930-10am ideally) you will find the stalls are full of fresh fruit and vegetables, salads, freshly cut bundles of herbs, and for me, all that much sweeter to taste than in the UK. I think this is all due to the fact the sun has been shining on them, kissing them with sweetness. I also find there is no need to make a separate trip to go to the supermarkets, the markets have every thing you need in daily life in Greece. The market combined with the local bakery (and there seems to be almost one on every street corner, or no more than a couple of blocks away) making daily life really easy. Before the Euro, the markets seemed cheaper than the supermarket, but now I am not so sure. But one thing I do know, the fruit is at its best – often picked that morning or worst case, the night before.
The one thing we make every time we are in Greece is fresh homemade cloudy lemonade. it has now become a family tradition. Every hot sunny day, whether spring or summer, we make homemade lemonade!
We tend to double the recipe as one litre is consumed in moments!
Be sure to have ice cubes at the ready and fun straws!! We’ve also made the video on YouTube, so you can see for yourself just how easy it is to make homemade lemonade! You can also stop and pause the video and watch as a kind of step by step. Super quick, super easy! Let us know if you give it a try!
Our favourite summer time recipe – fresh homemade lemonade
Always refreshing, and really easy to prepare. Just put it in an insulated bottle and take it in your lunchbox.
This recipe makes a litre of freshly homemade lemonade.
You need:
4 lemons, each lemon cut into 8 wedges
175g sugar
1 litre ice cold water
ice cubes
You also need some kind of blender, whether a hand held one (Multi practic or similar) to blitz the lemons into pulp or a food processor (Kenwood Chef or other).
What to do:
Blitz the lemons with half of the sugar, ice cubes, and 500ml water. Strain the juice in a sieve and set this juice aside. Tip the lemons and pulp back into the processor. Add the rest of the sugar, water and ice cubes and blitz again.
Strain the juice into the jug containing the reserved juice. Discard the pulp.
Add extra ice cubes, and serve.
It takes us 15 minutes tops to prepare this.
An extra tip is to try it with oranges instead, or for extra “zing!” add some lime juice!
Go on, have a go, it is that easy and in this amazing weather you are currently having in the UK, it will bring the mediterranean that much closer to you!
End of day score at the beach: 17 crabs, 5 fish and 2 casualties.
Cloudy Lemonade recipe
Homemade Lemonade
Equipment
- multipractic or hand blender
- jug
- mixing bowl x 2
- sieve
- sharp knife
- wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 4 lemons the largest ones you can find
- 175 g sugar regular sugar is fine, caster sugar is ideal
- 1 litre ice cold water ideally chilled in the fridge
- icecubes a handful
Instructions
- Cut the lemons into eight wedges each.
- Blitz lemons in food processor with half of the sugar ice cubes and 500ml of the chilled water.
- Strain the juice using a sieve into a jug and set to one side.
- Tip the lemon pulp back into the food processor or hand held blitzer you are using.
- Add the rest of the sugar, ice cubes and 500ml water. Blitz again.
- Strain this using the sieve into the jug with reserved juices. Use the spoon to help push this through the sieve.
- Discard the pulp.
- Serve in chilled glasses with lots of ice.
- Don't forget the fancy straws of your choice! Enjoy
- As an alternative, this could be made with oranges instead of lemons. Just add a squirt of lime juice for that extra zing!
Notes
For lots more lunchbox inspiration or summery drink ideas, do check out our recipe section. If you like the sound of this recipe why not try the strawberry fizz drink recipe.
If you are tempted to make this homemade lemonade recipe, do share on instagram and tag us @lunchboxworld and be sure to use the hashtag #lunchboxworld so we can see all your creations!
Enjoy the sunny days and have fun!
The Lunchbox Lady x
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