Healthy Homemade Lemonade with Probiotics

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Healthy homemade lemonade ~ packed with probiotics and the kids love it!

Posted by Tamatha

There is nothing like the flavor of fresh lemonade.  We have reached the time of year when citrus is plentiful and so fragrant.  Store bought lemonade is full of high fructose corn syrup and artificial lemon flavoring.  Homemade is absolutely better but what if you could have fresh homemade lemonade and a good healthy dose of probiotics at the same time?  Your kids will never know its healthy, they will only know it tastes great and will adore your efforts!!

Lets make some lacto-fermented organic lemonade…

You will need a gallon size glass jar with tight fitting lid

12 organic juicy lemons

1/2 cup – 1 cup organic evaporated cane sugar  ( you can use Sucanat but I find it makes the color too dark)

1 cup fresh whey (easily drained from fresh yogurt)

cool clean chlorine free water

Here we go…

First, you need to get that cup of whey.  If you happen to have some fresh whey in your fridge that’s great.  If not get some whole milk organic live cultured yogurt or better yet make some.

Next, you need to drain the whey from that yogurt, so you will need some very clean cheesecloth, a bowl and a few rubber bands.  The easiest way for me to do this is to drape the cheesecloth into the bowl and add the yogurt onto the cheesecloth.  Pull the sides up and gather them at the top and hold the whole thing closed with a rubber band…

Straining yogurt into cheesecloth

 

Now loop another two rubber bands through the ones holding your pouch closed and use this new “loop” to hang the pouch above the bowl from a knob on your upper kitchen cabinet…

Hanging my yogurt to drain

Once the yogurt drains for a few minutes grab a measuring cup and see if you have a full cup of whey.  Once you do go ahead and pour the Whey into the glass jar.

1 cup of whey

Next get your favorite lemon squeezer or your citrus juicer and start juicing 12 lemons.

Organic lemons

Amount of juice will vary, this is how much I got out of these 12 lemons

Add your fresh lemon juice to the Whey in the gallon jar. Give it a quick stir.

Now you will need to decide how much sugar you want to use.  You need to use at least a 1/2 cup of sugar  (the probiotic need to eat) up to a full cup.  I used 3/4 of a cup in mine.  I like the level of sweetness left after the fermentation.  Not too sweet not too tart.

Next, fill the jar with a gallon of cool filtered water and mix very well to distribute the whey and dissolve the sugar.

Now we wait

Now keep the jar on your kitchen counter (room temperature) and wait for 2 days.  The fermentation will eat some of the sugar you added so it will be less sweet than when you started.

Enjoy, It’s very tasty, full of probiotics and vitamins.  Your family will love it!

 

Disclaimer: I saved this recipe from aflockinthecity.com which no longer exists. The photos and article are by Tamatha.

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