Best Pink Lemonade (Naturally Hot Pink)
“A naturally hot pink lemonade recipe made with a secret ingredient to get the prettiest pink color ever! So bold, sweet, tart, delicious, and refreshing!
Watch me make this hot pink lemonade from start to finish!
Pink lemonade searches begin to kick into high gear on Google in April, and I’m sure you know why! There is just something pretty and Springy about pink lemonade. It makes the perfect girly drink for a Spring baby shower and bridal shower, or for relaxing outside on a hot summer day. But what exactly is pink lemonade?
What is pink lemonade?
Pink lemonade is not a particular flavor. It’s not strawberry lemonade, red raspberry lemonade, or any other red fruit-flavored lemonade. They have their own recipes. Pink lemonade is just regular lemonade with red coloring. It should taste just like regular lemonade, but… well…pink! To make regular lemonade pink, most people use food dye or a little bit of fruit juice from a red-colored fruit. We’ll be doing something a little bit different in this recipe, though, and I’ll never use fruit to make pink lemonade again; more on that later.
Ok, since pink lemonade is just regular lemonade with a pink color, what’s the big deal? Where did this concept even come from? That was my next question, so I had to look into I,t and the stories are numerous!
Origin of Pink Lemonade: Where did pink lemonade come from?
Lemonade is such a popular drink at the circus, so it’s no wonder several stories claim that pink lemonade originated at the circus. There are actually several stories floating around the net about the origins of pink lemonade. However, these two are my favorites, and both tie pink lemonade’s birth to the circuses in America, but who knows? You can read more about the origins of pink lemonade here.
Story #1
According to the first story, a man named Henry E. Allot joined the circus as a teenager. He claimed that he accidentally dropped some cinnamon candies into a batch of lemonade, and it turned pink. They decided to sell the drink anyway to keep from having to throw it out. Apparently, the “pink lemonade” was a hit, and pink lemonade was born.
Story #2.
The next story (and my favorite) claims that Pete Conklin invented pink lemonade. It claims that when he was selling lemonade at a circus, he ran out of water and grabbed a tub of dirty water. Whether or not this was on purpose or an accident it is still up in the air. A performer had just wrung out her red tights in the dirty water, and the dye from the tights created pink water. Pete sold the drink as “pink lemonade,” and his sales doubled.
The BEST Pink Lemonade Recipe
I can assure you that this homemade pink lemonade recipe does not include cinnamon candies or red dye from dirty tights! But it DOES have a secret ingredient that makes the PRETTIEST, all-natural pink color ever! Wanna know what it is? BEET JUICE!!!!
Don’t click off, I promise you’ll LOVE it! Even if you hate beets as I do! Ick!
Why beets?
- Choose your shade of beautiful pink
- No beet smell or taste
- Doesn’t separate or become cloudy like fruit juices
- 100% natural pink dye
- Less than a teaspoon colors an entire pitcher
- You can find beet juice in Target, Whole Foods, Publix, etc.
Need I say more…?
I use to make my homemade pink lemonade recipe with strawberry juice, raspberry juice, or sometimes cranberry juice because…well..it just seemed like the most natural thing to do. However, using strawberries left me with pink lemonade that was kinda orange-pink. Raspberry juice gave the lemonade a suitable pink color, but it also separated slightly and made the lemonade cloudy if I wasn’t careful to strain it well. I also had to use a bit more of it to get the pink color, which also imparted some raspberry flavor. Boo.
Oh well, I just dealt with it. I never thought to try anything else to get a perfect pink color. I just assumed that, naturally, pink lemonade would never be the color of the ones in the grocery store that use dyes. WRONG!
Snapple to the rescue!
As I was drinking my pretty pink Snapple pink lemonade, I noticed how gorgeous it was. Snapple uses no artificial colors, so how were they creating such a lovely pink drink? What in nature produces that glorious pink shade? I scanned the short ingredients list and saw it… VEGETABLE BLEND
Upon this discovery, I quickly ditched my “fruit juices” and whipped up a batch using ( not even a teaspoon!!) of beet juice. The results: A gorgeous, pretty pink lemonade! Just the shade I was looking for without the cloudiness! In fact, beets create a wide range of drop-dead gorgeous shades of pink, depending on how much you use.
I would have never guessed to use vegetables as a colorant for lemonade! Sure, beets are sometimes used in red velvet cake, but did you know they make such a pretty shade of pink? Maybe I’m late for the party, but I’m glad to finally be here! I mean, just look at that shade! It’s almost an electric pink, which is the perfect shade for a boozy, Girls’ Night In drink, in my opinion.
I’m officially calling this drink Divas Can Cook Lemonade, due to its gorgeous hot pink color! The two on the right in the photo below were colored with beet juice.
Pink Lemonade Shades
But the million-dollar question, and all I cared about, was: Can you taste the beets?
When I tell you I LOATHE beets, I mean it! I can’t get past the dirt taste without gagging. I know my Grandma Barb is probably shaking her head at me right now because she used to always preach the benefits of eating beets and vitamin C.
The verdict: You absolutely CAN NOT taste the beet flavor at all. Like NONE! The recipe uses less than a teaspoon to make an entire batch of pink lemonade, thanks to beets’ super-concentrated pigment. It simply just lends a gorgeous color, and that’s it.
Case closed, folks! Go make a batch of the most gorgeous pink lemonade and use a few drops of beet juice for the prettiest pink color and the purest lemonade flavor.
How to soften lemons
This lemonade contains a whopping 2 cups of fresh lemon juice. Yes, I like my homemade lemonade to be bold, tart, and sweet!! Fresh lemon juice is a must for the best pink lemonade! You’ll need about eight large lemons to equal 2 cups; that’s a lot of juicing, and it helps if the lemons are super soft. To soften my lemons, I like to roll and press them back and forth on the counter until they are very soft. If your lemons are super hard, try microwaving them for a few minutes to soften them up.
Pink Lemonade Recipe Ingredients
- Fresh lemon juice: Provides the best, freshest flavor.
- Granulated sugar: To sweeten it up. You can use other sweeteners if desired.
- Filtered water: No tap water here for the best flavor.
- Beet juice: For pink color.
How to make Pink Lemonade
- Juice the lemons, strain, and set the juice aside.
- In a pot, add water and sugar. Heat, while stirring, just until the sugar melts.
- Add to a pitcher.
- Stir in the lemon juice.
- Add in remaining cups of cold water until the desired sweetness is reached.
- Stir in beet juice until your desired shade is reached.
- Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
- Serve cold over ice.
- Garnish with fresh mint and lemon slices if desired
Why is this Pink lemonade recipe so good?
Well, first, it starts with simple syrup. This ensures that there are no granules of sugar, resulting in a smooth and perfectly sweetened finished drink. Since this pink lemonade uses beet juice, which imparts no flavor, only real lemonade flavor shines through. Not to mention the lemon juice-sugar-water ratios are darn near perfect if you like a really bold, sweet, and tart pink lemonade like I do!!!
Pink Lemonade FAQs:
Is pink lemonade vegan? You can make this recipe vegan by substituting raw cane sugar for the granulated sugar.
My lemonade is too sweet. How can I fix it? No problem, just add more water and/or lemon juice. However, remember that when serving it over ice, lemonade that isn’t as sweet will water down quickly. Warm lemonade will taste way sweeter than cold lemonade, so keep that in mind when tweaking the sweetness level. Before adding more water to this recipe, pour a little over ice and let it get super cold, then try it. You will notice that it doesn’t taste as sweet as it did when it was warm or at room temperature.
Can I use concentrated lemon juice? In a pinch, you can grab the infamous plastic lemon bottle, but let that be your last resort. Fresh lemon juice is king and provides that amazing tang.
Where do I buy beet juice? Use beet juice that is not from concentrate. I get my pure beet juice from Harris Teeter or Publix. You can also find it in Whole Foods. If all else fails, just grab a can of pure, unsalted beets. The juice in the can can be used. Of course, you could always buy fresh beets and juice them. I’ve even made this lemonade using a beet juice blend consisting of beets, carrots, and oranges. It worked just as well.
Make up a cold pitcher of this delicious pink lemonade for your next warm-weather fiesta and let people guess how you achieved that natural hot pink color!
Get the Recipe:
Best Pink Lemonade
Ingredients
- 8-10 large lemons
- 8-10 cups filtered water, divided
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- pure beet juice (not from concentrate) (few drops)
Instructions
- Soften the lemons if needed by rolling them firmly on the counter or warming them in the microwave for a few seconds to make them easier to juice. Cut them in half. Using a juicer, juice the lemons until you have 2 cups of lemon juice. Strain and set aside.8-10 large lemons
- In a pot, add 2 cups of water and sugar. Heat, while stirring, until the sugar has melted completely and the mixture is syrupy.8-10 cups filtered water, divided, 2 cups granulated sugar
- Pour the mixture into a large pitcher and add the lemon juice.
- Stir in the remaining water to suit your taste. Do this gradually to prevent watering it down and taste often while adding the water. Remember warm lemonade tastes WAY sweeter than cold lemonade. To test out the sweetness, pour a little bit into a cup with ice so that it gets cold. (I like my lemonade with 6-7 cups of water which creates a bold, tart, and sweet lemonade that tastes perfect once it's chilled and over ice.)
- Add the beet juice by the drop until the desired color is reached. (To check the pink shade, pour a little bit in a glass over ice, since the shade can look much darker in the pitcher.)pure beet juice (not from concentrate)
- Chill the lemonade in the fridge until ready to serve. Stir before serving and serve over ice.
- Garnish with mint and lemon slices.
Video
Hmm, I disagree that pink lemonade tastes exactly the same as regular. Could be a regional thing, but most pink lemonades that I’ve had contain grenadine, which gives it a distinct flavor.
Love all your tips! And recipes! Thank you-
Made this for a party and it was a big hit! Making some again for a Memorial Day gathering. Delish and the color came out the perfect pink! Thank you!
I’ve made this several times and my family LOVES it!!! It reminds me of chik fil a’s lemonade. The beet juice does give it such a pretty color. I’ve memorized the recipe and will continue to use this as my lemonade base. May try and add some different fruits just to have some variety.