Early in the days of dating and young love, Dave and I came across delightful, made on the spot Mint Limeade at the Downtown SLC Farmer Market. Since it was a bit of a drive to the market (and now it's really quite the drive to that market) we've figured out our own recipe for the wonderfully refreshing Mint Limeade. I may have shared this recipe before, but I feel that it still needed some tweaking. Now, I am quite happy with where it's at, so here it is! It's really quite easy and the perfect summer beverage.
What you will need;
8-10 limes, juiced
1 bunch fresh mint
3/4 sugar
2 quarts water
What to do;
Fill up your pitcher with water, and sugar. Whisk in sugar until dissolved.
Now the most difficult part of this recipe is juicing the limes. Often times they are beasts to juice by hand. You could throw them in an electric juicer, but, at least with my juicer, I have to peel them first, so no thanks. So my trick is to first slice all the limes in half, and throw them all in the microwave for 15 seconds. Sounds weird, I know, but this will make them a bit softer and easier to juice so you can get more juice out of them. My favorite tool is a hand press juicer which you can usually get from any store for about $10. Worth it! Obviously add the lime juice to your pitcher and stir together.
If you don't have something to help with juicing and don't feel like you got much juice out by hand, just put the halved limes in with the water and all other ingredients and just let it all marinade for 2-4 hours. I often will do this at the start of dinner when I am feeling too lazy to juice the limes and then the limeade is ready once I am all wrapped up with dinner! Easy peasy!
This part might sound like a lot of work, but really it's not! And most importantly, don't just give up and use the pre-bottled nasty lime juice. I repeat. DO NOT USE NASTY BOTTLED LIME JUICE. That goes for the syrupy frozen stuff too. Just do it fresh my friends! Otherwise we can't be friends!
Next, tear up the mint leaves, usually just tearing each mint leaf in two, you don't need to chop them up small or anything, and add that to the pitcher and stir a bit. The flavors are usually ready in about an hour. You can leave the mint and limes in the pitcher for up to 4 hours. I usually take out the mint and limes at about the four mark as it starts to get a little too strong, and the limes can start to break down and make it too acidic.
Some people like it more sweet, some people like it more tart, that's up to you! But I promise, it will be wonderfully refreshing for a slow rock on the porch on a hot summer day!
Enjoy!
What you will need;
8-10 limes, juiced
1 bunch fresh mint
3/4 sugar
2 quarts water
What to do;
Fill up your pitcher with water, and sugar. Whisk in sugar until dissolved.
Now the most difficult part of this recipe is juicing the limes. Often times they are beasts to juice by hand. You could throw them in an electric juicer, but, at least with my juicer, I have to peel them first, so no thanks. So my trick is to first slice all the limes in half, and throw them all in the microwave for 15 seconds. Sounds weird, I know, but this will make them a bit softer and easier to juice so you can get more juice out of them. My favorite tool is a hand press juicer which you can usually get from any store for about $10. Worth it! Obviously add the lime juice to your pitcher and stir together.
This part might sound like a lot of work, but really it's not! And most importantly, don't just give up and use the pre-bottled nasty lime juice. I repeat. DO NOT USE NASTY BOTTLED LIME JUICE. That goes for the syrupy frozen stuff too. Just do it fresh my friends! Otherwise we can't be friends!
Next, tear up the mint leaves, usually just tearing each mint leaf in two, you don't need to chop them up small or anything, and add that to the pitcher and stir a bit. The flavors are usually ready in about an hour. You can leave the mint and limes in the pitcher for up to 4 hours. I usually take out the mint and limes at about the four mark as it starts to get a little too strong, and the limes can start to break down and make it too acidic.
Some people like it more sweet, some people like it more tart, that's up to you! But I promise, it will be wonderfully refreshing for a slow rock on the porch on a hot summer day!
Enjoy!
.JPG)
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