Limonata {Italian Lemonade}

Step 1

Wash lemons under cold running water and scrub them gently with a brush to remove any impurities.

Step 2

Zest all lemons using a microplane zester. Grate only the yellow part of the skin and avoid grating the white pith which will make lemonade bitter.

Step 3

Add granulated sugar and torn mint leaves.Mix everything well applying pressing and squeezing motion to extract the most flavor.

Step 4

Let sit 30 minutes or more (macerate).

Step 5

Squeeze lemon juice from zested lemons and add to sugar and zest mix. Stir well.Strain the mix using a strainer.

Step 6

Using a vegetable peeler peel only the yellow part and add it to the food processor.

Step 7

Using a sharp knife remove all the white pith around lemons. It’s super important to remove as much of it as possible since this is what make lemonade bitter!

Step 8

Cut lemons in quarters and remove all the seeds.

Step 9

Add lemon quarters to the lemon peels together with fresh mint leaves and sugar.Pulse until smooth. Add a few ice cubes or a little bit of water to help everything blend better.

Step 10

Let the mix sit for 30 minutes than strain.

Step 11

Store Limonata mix (concentrate) in a pitcher. When ready to serve, fill half of a glass with ice, add about ⅓ of a glass lemonade mix and top everything with soda water.