How To Make Lemonade Without Sugar (Healthy Homemade Recipe) (2024)

Published: Aug 24, 2020 · Modified: Aug 24, 2021 by Rebecca Pytell · This post may contain affiliate links.

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A step-by-step homemade Healthy Lemonade Recipe that's sugar-free and only 3 ingredients! How to make lemonade without sugar is so easy, full of fresh lemon juice, and nothing artificial! A simple kid-friendly drink that's gluten-free, vegan, keto, allergy-free, and paleo!

There's nothing more refreshing than a cold glass of some homemade lemonade! Freshly squeezed, perfectly sweet, with just the right about of tartness. I don't know about you, but I didn't grow up drinking healthy lemonade, but I drank my fair share of good old Country Time (i.e. 100% sugar). I used to just add scoops of the mix to cups of water or plain seltzer for a sweet fizzy soda-free beverage! And pink lemonade was always #1; tell me I'm wrong.

How to Make Lemonade without Sugar

One way to make lemonade a truly healthy beverage is to swap out all the sugar! That doesn't mean you'll be drinking straight up lemon juice though (that's cruel!). In a premade mix, like Country Time, you'll find a whopping 16g of sugar in ½ a scoop (17g)! The first ingredient is sugar, then fructose, and a whole host of artificial additives, colors, etc. Not only are we using sugar-free sweeteners in this recipe, but fresh lemon juice too which means no need for added colors, flavors, or preservatives!

Ingredients for Homemade Lemonade

Other Sweetener Options

If you don't straight erythritol, you can use any granulated natural sugar-free sweetener!

Monkfruit
2 to 1 Stevia Blend (you would use ½ cup to 1 cup water)
Purecane

Sugar-Free Simple Syrup

You'll still make a simple syrup for sweetening the lemonade. By boiling 1 cup of water and adding 1 cup of granulated natural sugar-free sweetener, like erythritol. Once the sweetener is dissolved, let the simple syrup cool down. You can use just the amount of syrup you would like in your lemonade depending on how sweet you want it! You can save the rest in the fridge for other cold beverages that need a non-gritty sweetener!

How to Make Healthy Lemonade

Equipped with your sugar-free simple syrup and fresh lemons, the next thing to do is SQUEEZE those babies! THIS enameled lemon juicer is the best! Super easy to use and the one I've personally had for years! All you need to do to juice your lemons is wash them off, slice them in half, and place the cut side down in the squeezer and squeeze out the juice into a liquid measuring cup.

You want 1 cup of fresh lemon juice which will be around 5 standard-sized lemons (not too big or small).

Add your fresh lemon juice to a large pitcher, along with 3 to 4 cups of cold water (taste test it as you add the water to see how much you would like it diluted). Then mix in the simple syrup. Start with ¾ cup and add more if needed.

What are the Best Lemons for Lemonade?

I used standard lemons you'll find at any grocery store. If Meyer lemons are in season (late winter, early spring), you can opt for this variety too. Meyer lemons are smaller, smoother, darker in color on the outside, and sweeter (and more expensive). You won't have to use as much sweetener then either. However, your standard bright yellow sour lemons are just as good for a pitcher of lemonade from scratch!

How Long does Fresh Lemonade Last?

When you finished lemonade is stored in the fridge in a closed container, it will last for a good 7 days.

Can Lemonade be Healthy?

I think we've cleared that one up today! Only 3 ingredients, fresh, delicious, and something you can enjoy daily, not just as a treat! This recipe is:

Gluten-Free
Vegan
Allergy-free (Dairy-Free,Soy-Free,Egg-Free,Nut-Free,Peanut-Free,Wheat-Free,Sesame-Free,Corn-Free,Coconut-Free)
Sugar-Free
Keto & Low-Carb
Paleo
Kid-Friendly
Contains NO artificial colors, flavors, or sweeteners

Homemade Lemonade Recipe

Healthy Lemonade Recipe (Sugar-Free, Homemade, 3-Ingredients)

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Ingredients

Scale

Sugar-Free Simple Syrup:

1 Cup Water
1 Cup Granulated Erythritol (or preferred granulated sweetener)*

Lemonade:

5-6 Lemons (1 Cup Juice)
3-4 Cups Water

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Instructions

To make the simple syrup, boil 1 cup of water on the stove before adding in 1 cup of granulated sweetener to dissolve. Remove from heat and allow it to cool while you juice your lemons.
Wash and slice your lemons in half before juicing the halves into a liquid measuring cup. You want 1 cup of lemon juice.
Add the lemon juice to a large pitcher, before adding 3 cups of fresh water to the juice. Add an extra 4th cup if you want the lemonade more diluted.
Now add the sugar-free simple syrup you made. Start with ¾ cup and add more if needed after taste testing.
Serve chilled with ice and extra lemon slices if desired.

Notes

*Other great natural sugar-free sweeteners:

Monkfruit
2 to 1 Stevia Blend (you would use ½ cup to 1 cup water)
Purecane

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 Cup

Now the only question left is...what is pink lemonade? It literally is just lemonade with some food coloring! So if you want to go that route, add some natural color to your pitcher! A few drops of red will give you just the magical beverage ALL kids love (the color makes it taste even better!)