Confession: I am crazy for florals. I love the flavors of rose in a harissa paste. I love violet in chocolates and ice cream. And most of all, I love a lavender simple syrup for a drink, dessert or cocktail.

This Lavender Lemonade recipe is easy to make and perfect for a spring and summer day. Best of all, it’s an alcohol free drink and makes the perfect accompaniment to a Sunday brunch or an afternoon tea.

So let’s make it.

Ingredients to Make Lavender Lemonade

One of my favorite things about this recipe is that the ingredients are so simple! All you need is sugar, water, fresh lemons, and dried lavender buds. You will need a stovetop or hot plate to make your simple syrup and a gorgeous pitcher to store and serve your lemonade.

Plus, you may want additional lemon slices and lavender sprigs to dress the glasses and serve this lemonade with style.

Fresh lemons are best and garden fresh make it even better! Whatever you do make sure your lemons are juicy.

What kind of Lavender to Use

Not all lavender is made equal. For this recipe, you must have culinary grade lavender. Lavender can be treated with pesticides that you won’t want to eat, so read the label carefully. If it doesn’t say “food grade” or “culinary lavender” don’t use it.

The more fragrant the lavender the better it will taste in the recipe. Color is for aesthetic appeal, but doesn’t have any relationship to the flavor.

I used this lavender in my recipe. The sprigs were a little harder to find food grade, so those I got locally at the farmer’s market!

Everything You Need to Know about Simple Syrup

To make Lavender Lemonade, first you must make a Lavender Simple Syrup. You can make simple syrup in lots of different flavors. Some of my favorites are: Jalapeño Simple Syrup & Pomegranate Simple Syrup.

The trick is that you need to dissolve your sugar completely.

As your sugar begins to dissolve, the sugar crystals become smaller and harder to see. So it’s difficult to tell when the sugar is completely dissolved into a syrup. The worst is when you don’t heat it long enough, so when the syrup cools it has a gritty texture.

That’s why I always heat my simple syrup just a touch longer than other recipes suggest. I heat my syrup closer to 10 minutes.

You can also make your simple syrup thicker or thinner – sugary or less so just by altering the amount of water and sugar you use. If you prefer your simple syrup to flow easily, add more water! If you prefer drinks that are less sweet, add less sugar.

Any simple syrup recipe is adaptable to your tastes.

How to Make Lavender Lemonade

So now that we’ve talked through ingredients, supplies, and making the perfect simple syrup, let’s make this Relaxing Lavender Lemonade!

First, start by combining 1 cup of water with 1 cup of sugar. Place the ingredients in a stock pot and heat to medium high or high, just until hot. Then reduce your sugar and water to a simmer and stir occasionally. Continue for around 5 minutes.

Next, add your culinary lavender and be sure that the flowers soak in and don’t just rest on top of the syrup. Heat your syrup for another 3-5 minutes or until your sugar crystals are completely dissolved.

Remove your mixture from the heat and if you like, remove your lavender with a mesh spoon. You can also keep the lavender in the simple syrup as it cools. It just depends on how much lavender flavor you want in your lemonade.

My best recommendation is to taste it as you go. Of course it will be much stronger in this form!

Once your lavender simple syrup is completely cool, squeeze fresh lemons to reach 1 cup of lemon juice. Remove any seeds and if you like, you can remove any pulp too. Of course, I like to keep mine.

In a pitcher, combine the lemon juice, lavender simple syrup, 4 cups of water, and 2 cups of ice. Stir to blend your ingredients thoroughly.

Serve your lavender lemonade over ice. For an extra touch, garnish your lemonade with a sprig of lavender and lemon slices.

It’s the perfect summer afternoon treat! It’s great for a hot day, a ladies brunch or anytime that a non-alcoholic drink is preferred.