Blueberry Lemonade

Refreshing Blueberry Lemonade is the perfect summertime sipper. This homemade blueberry lemonade recipe is perfect for easy entertaining, whether you’re hosting a backyard barbecue, a baby shower or simply inviting friends to your house just because. Makes 12 servings.

If you love Blueberry Lemonade, you should also give my Arnold Palmer Iced Tea Lemonade Mocktail, Sweet Sunrise Mocktail and Strawberry Lemonade a try.

In my opinion, the best way to combat the oncoming summer heat is to have a go-to warm weather drink.

My drink this year is Blueberry Lemonade.

Last week, I picked up a giant box of blueberries, as well as two large bags of fresh lemons, in preparation for the baby shower we hosted this past weekend.

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Our friends are having a boy, so I wanted a drink that was appropriately colored (even if the muddled blueberries leave this drink a little pinkish/purple), as well as something refreshing and non-alcoholic for our guests to enjoy!

Why I love this recipe:

A take on my Strawberry Lemonade recipe, I made this homemade Blueberry Lemonade recipe the day before the shower.

I knew the preparations were going to get a little crazy the day-of, and I wanted to give myself as much time as possible to pull things together on Saturday.

Since this lemonade was made the day before the party, I didn’t have to fret about squeezing lemons and muddling blueberries while balancing the remaining party prep.

Unsurprisingly, the shower was a smashing success!

And this Blueberry Lemonade was well-loved, too! It’s got a good balance between sweet and tart, and it is incredibly refreshing for the hot days ahead.

Other lemonade recipes we adore during the summer months: Vodka Lemonade with Raspberry | Homemade Mint Lemonade | Cherry Lemonade Margaritas | Mixed Berry Mint Lemonade | Spiked Blueberry Lemonade | Fresh Squeezed Lemonade | Watermelon Lemonade | Lavender Lemonade

Looking for another refreshing summer drink? Be sure to check out my Nonalcoholic Drinks Recipe Index.

What you need to make this recipe:

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• A citrus juicer or a citrus reamer for juicing the lemons
• This (or a similar) muddler to break down the blueberries
• A pitcher, like my Kate Spade New York Raise a Glass Acrylic Pitcher
• Drinking glasses of your choosing

Here’s what you need:

• Simple syrup — you can make homemade simple syrup or you can purchase the bottled kind from the store, if that’s easier. If you don’t love sweeteners made with granulated sugar, you could use honey simple syrup instead. It’ll change the flavor profile a bit, but the floral sweetness pairs nicely with the blueberries.
• Cold water — this is going to dilute the lemon juice, so it’s very important!
• Fresh lemon juice — the shelf-stable stuff at the store just won’t do. The only way to “cheat” is if you find cold pressed lemon juice in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. That’s
• Fresh blueberries — for the sweet blueberry flavor and the gorgeous pink color. If you can’t find juicy, fresh blueberries, you can use frozen ones. Just be sure that they’re defrosted before you muddle them.

Variations on this lemonade:

• Use blueberry syrup in place of the simple syrup for bonus blueberry flavor.
• Make a smaller batch. (Half the recipe or even quarter it!)
• Swap the cold water for your favorite sparkling water and make individual glasses of lemonade.

How do you make blueberry lemonade from scratch?

Make The Simple Syrup

In a saucepan over high heat, combine equal amounts of water and granulated sugar. Raw (turbinado) sugar works, too, though I do not recommend using brown sugar for this step because it changes the color of the syrup itself.

As the mixture heats, swirl it gently until the sugar completely dissolves, and then turn off the heat.

Set this aside. You can make this 1-2 days in advance, and transfer it to a mason jar and keep it cool in the fridge once it’s cooled to room temperature.

Make The Lemonade

First and foremost, squeeze your lemon juice! (You can also make this step easier on yourself by purchasing freshly squeezed lemon juice from the store OR using an electric citrus juicer.) This is the most time-consuming step and will take you a while if you’re doing this by hand since you’ll only get 1-2 oz. of juice per lemon.

Measure out the blueberries into a small bowl. Use a muddler to mush them up, and set aside. This is a really fun step for kids to complete if you’ve got tiny kitchen helpers on hand.

In a large pitcher, combine the water, simple syrup, lemon juice and muddled blueberries. Stir them together with a large spoon until combined.

Chill for a few hours or serve over ice! You can also add frozen blueberries as “ice cubes” to keep this pitcher cold for guests!

Garnish with lemon slices or wheels, and enjoy!

Erin’s Easy Entertaining Tips

As I previously stated, Blueberry Lemonade (or any large batch lemonade recipe) is really fantastic for entertaining in the summertime. (Think, like a Backyard Barbecue!)

Entertaining should be fun, so you want to make hosting easy on yourself. Which means… a few simple shortcuts can make all the difference in your attitude and mentality leading up to your gathering. And since I know you want to have fun, here’s what I like to do: 

• Make it in advance. And don’t be afraid to use shortcuts, like store-bought freshly squeezed lemon juice. 
• Serve with blueberry “ice cubes.” A pitcher drink should stay cold without getting watered down, and frozen fruit is a fabulous way to do just this! It adds color, too!
• Set it on a bar… and forget it! Since this makes such a large amount of lemonade, unless you’re hosting a ton of folks, you can let this hang out on the bar for guests to serve themselves without you worrying about it running out. And if you’re concerned about it running out, make a second pitcher in advance to ease those woes.

If you’re going to juice your own lemons, I salute you and your arm strength.

Here are some thoughts on getting the most juice out of the lemons you have:

Looking for an easy entertaining dishes to pair with blueberry lemonade?

Here are some of our favorite summertime recipes to make and serve alongside this homemade lemonade recipe at a casual gathering.

• Vegetarian Taco Cups
• Pineapple Salsa Vinaigrette
• Pulled Pork Coleslaw Eggrolls
• German Potato Salad
• Patriotic Strawberry Bruschetta