guest post// strawberry lemonade

Hi I am Donna. Mom of two adorable little food monsters and wife to one big monster. For the last few years I have taken my little family on a whole food journey; and I blog about it on Whole Food Bellies. I share family friendly clean eating recipes, tips and tidbits about our experience along the way.

I aim to create happy people and happier bellies by encouraging people to cut out harmful processed foods from their diets and indulge instead in delicious and easy to prepare whole foods. I am a firm believer in the 80% rule; as long as we are eating well the majority of the time, a few treats here and there aren’t going to hurt - i.e. if I happen to make it to Paris there’s no way I am going to be missing out on fresh croissants :)

How cute are the lemonade stands little kids run everywhere in the summer? I can never turn down an excited 10 year old with their first little entrepreneurial endeavor going on :) I know as a kid, I would have been way too awkward to run something like that myself, so I always think they are pretty amazing!

I love the stands, and I always buy it because the kids are so cute, but I always find the lemonade itself to be way too sugary for my taste. I have been experimenting with a way to make some without so much added sugar, and I think I have finally hit the nail on the head. Plus, it uses up some of summers other amazing produce - strawberries! How could you say no to that combination?

Only three ingredients (four if you want it a bit sweeter) and a cinch to make. Just roast some strawberries to get them even sweeter than their fresh counterparts, puree with some fresh lemon juice and add water and ice. Voila, you have the perfect drink to cool you down in the summer months, without all the refined sugar usually thrown in there.

I have made up a couple batches of this strawberry-lemon concentrate and stored it in the freezer for fresh strawberry lemonade year round.

I hope you enjoy as much as we do!

INGREDIENTS:

4 cups washed and hulled strawberries
1 tbsp maple syrup (optional)
4 lemons
Water or coconut water to serve

METHOD:

Preheat oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large bowl, toss the strawberries with the maple syrup until covered. Pop the strawberries on a large roasting sheet and pop into the oven for 50 minutes until roasted and gooey. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Pop the strawberries and the juice of the 4 lemons (roughly 1 cup, but adjust according to lemony preference) into a food processor and puree until smooth. To serve, add one part strawberry-lemon concentrate to 2 parts water/coconut water. Mix well, add lots of ice and enjoy.
A sprig of mint always adds a nice touch as well :)

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Yum Donna! Thanks for sharing with us, this is definitely the perfect drink for Summer. :)

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