It's Just Chicken

When I first moved to New York City, I lived in the East Village and was fortunate enough to be near some great restaurants and coffee shops. My favorite was this little place on the corner of E. 11th and Ave B that served basil lemonade in the spring/summer months. It’s a nice change from traditional lemonade or iced tea and from lame baristas who actually use pickup lines like, “You know soy latte is Spanish for ‘I am latte’.” Gag.

Basil lemonade has a sweet, subtle anise flavor from the addition of the basil syrup to the lemon juice and water. The syrup is a derivation of simple syrup, or sugar dissolved in water. By steeping fresh basil in hot water, the leaves release their oils and infuse the simple syrup making a more fragrant drink than if they were mashed up with cold lemonade. Oh, basil lemonade also goes insanely well with vodka or tequila. Just saying.

For a variation you could add just a little black berry puree or vodka or tequila. Or a lot of vodka or tequila.

This recipe makes enough syrup for a couple of batches of lemonade and can be held covered in the refrigerator for about 1 week.

Basil Lemonade
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine
Yields 6-8 cups

• 2 cups basil syrup
• 2 cups cold water
• 1 1/4 cups fresh lemon juice

Basil Syrup
Yields about 4-5 cups

• 4 cups packed fresh basil leaves
• 4 cups cold water
• 2 cups sugar