Homemade lemonade

Askim

Hi
As cream of tartar is a extract of tartaric acid, Could I use cream of tartar instead of tartaric acid ??

A

Alun

What do you need tartaric acid / cream of tartar for if I may ask? I make home made lemonade all the time and it contains just lemons, sugar and water. There's plenty of acidity in the lemons as it is without adding any more.

The Hill Billy

I agree. The recipe I use is 1.5l water, juice of 8 lemons, 150g caster sugar & 250g berries puréed & sieved. It has a perfect balance of sweetness & sharpness. (It may be a bit sharp for some, but more sugar can be added depending on taste.)

Dizzyblonde

I never thought of berries, THB - I usually add a cup of cranberry juice to make pink lemonade.

Alun

I've put my recipe up here before but here goes ...

3 lemons
175g sugar
1 litre water

1) Peel lemons as thinly as possible using a potato peeler for example.
2) Place the peel in a bowl with the sugar, boil water and pour over.
3) Stir to dissolve sugar and allow to cool completely.
4) Juice lemons.
5) Add lemon juice and stir, pour into bottle and keep cool in fridge.

Dizzyblonde

I wish I could get really fresh lemons. My daughters brought one back from my brother's garden in California and the flavour was amazing, so much nicer than any I'd ever bought. It was really nice in iced tea.

Faith

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I wish I could get really fresh lemons. My daughters brought one back from my brother's garden in California and the flavour was amazing, so much nicer than any I'd ever bought. It was really nice in iced tea.

I was talking about this last night. I'd kill to have access to fresh fruit grown in the proper climate. I had some freshly squeezed orange juice in Spain last year - oranges from the b&b owners neighbours garden - and it was the best orange juice I've ever tasted. The fruit we get is a poor imitation of proper fruit in most cases .

Askim

Alun wrote: »

What do you need tartaric acid / cream of tartar for if I may ask? I make home made lemonade all the time and it contains just lemons, sugar and water. There's plenty of acidity in the lemons as it is without adding any more.

Does it not keep better with the acid ??

A

Alun

Askim wrote: »

Does it not keep better with the acid ??

A

I don't know, I'd never heard of adding it to be honest, so didn't know that was what it was for. In my house I keep the bottle in the fridge and it only lasts a few days anyway, because it gets drunk so quickly, so I've never had cause to add any kind of preservative.

Askim

Alun wrote: »

I've put my recipe up here before but here goes ...

3 lemons
175g sugar
1 litre water

1) Peel lemons as thinly as possible using a potato peeler for example.
2) Place the peel in a bowl with the sugar, boil water and pour over.
3) Stir to dissolve sugar and allow to cool completely.
4) Juice lemons.
5) Add lemon juice and stir, pour into bottle and keep cool in fridge.

Ok just did this one, do you dilute it or drink straight??
A

Alun

I personally find it a bit on the strong side like that, although it depends on the lemons and how much juice actually comes out of them, so I dilute it 50:50 with water, but my wife prefers it 'neat' ... so, your choice

annamcmahon

You could use citric acid which can be gotten in most Polish shops

pwurple

Faith wrote: »

I was talking about this last night. I'd kill to have access to fresh fruit grown in the proper climate. I had some freshly squeezed orange juice in Spain last year - oranges from the b&b owners neighbours garden - and it was the best orange juice I've ever tasted. The fruit we get is a poor imitation of proper fruit in most cases .

I have a lemon tree in a pot at home. Easy enough to grow, i move it indoors for frost. and it gives really delicious lemons, but only in bloody winter! Great for mulled wines and christmas baking, but useless for lemonade.

Faith

pwurple wrote: »

I have a lemon tree in a pot at home. Easy enough to grow, i move it indoors for frost. and it gives really delicious lemons, but only in bloody winter! Great for mulled wines and christmas baking, but useless for lemonade.

That's so interesting. Mind if I ask more? Where did you get it? How big is it? And how old was it before it started producing lemons?

pwurple

I brought it home from italy about 4 years ago on a total whim. On the plane, stuffed into my handluggage. It had a lemon on it when I bought it, I'm not sure how old it was. It's actually pretty big now, I'll try to get a pic later. The plant itself is between 3 and 4 foot tall I'd say. I have it in a fairly large pot. It smells great in summer evenings... lemon blossoms look like nothing much, tiny bud-like things, but smell fab!

Since then, I decided I want loads more, so I planted seeds from a few lemons in pots last year.

I had seen a guide on pinterest... here is the image I followed. Wash the seeds, put them in well drained compost in a sunny window, wait a while! Baby lemon trees!

I don't have as many as the pic below, not sure how long I'll be waiting for lemons off them.

rubadub

Alun wrote: »

What do you need tartaric acid / cream of tartar for if I may ask? I make home made lemonade all the time and it contains just lemons, sugar and water.

Some people will add baking soda to lemonade so it reacts with the acid, gives off carbon dioxide which gives it fizz. In this case you might need additional acid.