Peach Lemonade
Peach Lemonade is a refreshing, sweet and balanced drink to sip all summer long. All you need are a handful of ingredients, including fresh peach simple syrup, to make this sweet, subtle lemonade recipe. Makes 6 servings.
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We are lemonade fans in this household, and it does not matter how many renditions of lemonade I make because everyone is game to try all the new flavors. (It’s a tough life, truly. Ha.)
The process of making lemonade has long captured my girls’ attention, and they are both at the point where they can make and assemble most of this by themselves.
From squeezing the lemons (and figuring out which tools do the best job of actually getting the juice out) to the stirring and then taste testing… it’s an adventure.
They helped me develop this recipe and offered all kinds of tips and tricks after I photographed it.
Why I love this recipe:
Peaches are one of my favorite things about the summer months, and making this peach lemonade recipe has been on my list for a while now.
The trick was figuring out how to infuse all that delicious peach sweetness into the lemonade.
And we do this in two ways: we make a homemade peach simple syrup, which infuses sliced peaches with an intensely sweet sugar syrup, and then we add sliced peaches directly to the lemonade itself and muddle them.
The end result sings with gorgeous, sweet, subtle peach notes that are 100% natural. (No fake peach flavor here!)
This lemonade recipe is light, flavorful and so easy to sip on a hot day. In fact, I encourage you to do that because it’s really important to find little things you love during the hottest time of the year.
Other lemonade recipes we adore during the summer: Fresh Squeezed Lemonade | Vodka Lemonade with Raspberry / Blueberry Lemonade / Mixed Berry Mint Lemonade / Homemade Mint Lemonade | Watermelon Lemonade
Looking for another refreshing summer drink? Be sure to check out my Nonalcoholic Drinks Recipe Index.
What you’ll need to make this recipe:
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- Saucepan
- Fun Pitcher
- Citrus juicer
- Fine mesh strainer, to strain out lemon pulp
- Glasses
Let’s talk ingredients!
In addition to the tools above, you’re going to need some ingredients to make this recipe, too! Chances are, you might already have some of them in your fridge or pantry. Scroll down to the recipe card for the full measurements and instructions.
Here’s what you need to grab at the grocery store (or the roadside stand):
- Freshly squeezed lemon juice — the shelf-stable variety you can find at the grocery store won’t do. Juice the lemons yourself or find the cold pressed fresh lemon juice at the store. It normally hangs out by the pre-cut fruits in the refrigerated section.
- Water — if you drink your tap water, just use that! You don’t need fancy water to make simple syrup or the lemonade itself. You’ll just need several cups of water.
- Peach simple syrup — I really encourage you to make your own so that you do not have to rely on an artificially-flavored peach syrup from the store. You can make this days in advance before the lemonade, if desired. This is our sweetener… and you can add a little more, if desired, to get the amount of sweetness you like.
- Fresh peaches — slice these up and throw them into the pitcher with the lemonade for bonus peach flavor. I really liked when ours sat and the peaches infused the lemonade even more. To me, it’s worth the wait.
Garnishes:
Peach season is also the season where lots of fresh herbs are abundant. I added fresh thyme sprigs to my lemonade, but you could easily add some fresh mint leaves, fresh rosemary or fresh basil.
Feel free to use lemon slices or wedges for garnish, too.
Add additional fresh fruits and berries of the season, like raspberries and blackberries, for more color and summer flavor.
Spike it. While I haven’t tried this, a shot of bourbon or dark rum would be a delicious addition to your glass of iced lemonade.
How to make fresh Peach Lemonade
If you haven’t yet, make your peach simple syrup. Bring the mixture to a simmer, then add peaches and let it steep until it’s nice, sweet and peachy. (This will take about an hour, depending on how strong and sweet your peaches are.)
In a large pitcher, add the fresh peach slices. Muddle them. This will give us bonus peach flavor to the mixture.
Pour in the lemon juice, peach simple syrup and water.
Stir ’em together until incorporated.
Chill for 1-2 hours. (The longer it sits, the more vibrant the peach flavor will be!)
Serve over ice.
Pro tip!
Don’t add ice to the lemonade if you’re not serving it immediately because as it melts, the lemonade will become diluted.
How to store lemonade
Store in the refrigerator for up to a week or until it’s all gone.
Erin’s Easy Entertaining Tips
This recipe is an easy one to pull off for entertaining because it requires very little time and effort.
In fact, the most time you’ll spend on this recipe is juicing the lemons. (Also, it should be noted that the peach syrup recipe will take about an hour, give or take, to steep.)
Because of this, I think this Peach Lemonade drink is the perfect summertime entertaining drink. (Think backyard barbecues, picnics, potlucks and at-home tailgates.) It’s beloved by adults and children, and it’s so easy to sip.
Here are a few tips and tricks to make it as easy as possible:
- Make a batch of peach simple syrup 1-2 days in advance. Let it hang out in the fridge so it’s nice and cold.
- Squeeze the lemons in advance… or purchase a jar of freshly squeezed lemon juice in the refrigerated fruit section of your grocery store. This’ll make it easier to put the lemonade together before guests arrive.
- Make the lemonade before guests arrive so that it has time to chill out in the fridge. That way, it’ll be ice cold and the peach flavors will infuse even more with the lemonade.
- Make two pitchers if you’re hosting more than 6 people or keep extra ingredients in the fridge at the ready in case you run out.
Frequently Asked Questions
If it’s from the refrigerated produce shelves, yes, that should work. If it’s shelf stable, probably not.
Freshly squeezed lemon juice really makes a difference in homemade lemonade, so you want to make sure your lemon juice is as fresh as possible.
While you can use them in a pinch, I find that fresh peaches tend to add more flavor. You’ll need bonus time to infuse and also let everything sit if you use frozen peaches.
It will keep for up to a week in the fridge.
TIPS AND TRICKS FOR
Juicing Lemons at Home
Here are a few of my favorite tips and tricks about juicing lemons. They come in handy when you’re making a pitcher of homemade lemonade.
- Don’t juice a cold lemon. A cold lemon won’t give as much juice as a room temperature one. If you keep your lemons in the fridge, let it come to room temperature, or pop it in the microwave for 20 seconds to get it to warm up.
- Roll the lemon on the countertop. This will bring the juices to the surface.
- Slice the lemon at the equator, not from the stem to the tip.
- Don’t just squeeze it with your hands… use a lemon reamer or a juicer to get that good juice out of it.
- Run the juice through a fine mesh strainer if there is pulp and seeds in it before pouring into the glass.
More lemonade recipes to try:
Here’s how you can make this one…
Peach Lemonade
Ingredients
- 1 cup sliced peaches
- ¾ – 1 cup peach simple syrup
- 1 cup lemon juice
- 5 cups water
Equipment
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Instructions
- Add the peaches to a large pitcher. Gently muddle them with a muddler.
- Pour in the peach simple syrup and lemon juice.
- Pour in the water. Give it a stir and taste to see if you need more syrup.
- Serve over ice with additional peach slices, as garnish.
Notes
Nutrition
About the Author:
Erin Parker is a Southern gal living in Texas with her husband and two daughters. She started The Speckled Palate to share what she was cooking as a newlywed… and over the years, it’s evolved to capture her love for hosting. Specifically, the EASIEST, lowest key entertaining because everyone deserves to see their people and connect over good food. Learn more about her…
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