What makes pink lemonade pink? Doesn’t the canned stuff just have food dye in it to make it pink? I haven’t bought canned pink lemonade in decades so don’t really know. (But just in case you’re curious too, Joe Sevier at Epicurious has some theories.)

How To Make Pink Lemonade

I’m guessing the canned stuff we grew up with is pink only through the addition of artificial dyes. But we don’t need to do that. You know the easiest way to make lemonade pink? Add some cranberry juice! Unsweetened cranberry juice is tart, just like unsweetened lemon juice. All we need to do to turn our homemade lemonade pink is to incorporate some cranberry juice to the mix. We make a simple syrup by heating water and sugar until the sugar dissolves, then we mix it with lemon juice, cranberry juice, and some more water. Add a few ice cubes and we’re done! Isn’t it pretty? It’s the perfect refreshing cooler for a hot summer day.