This Brazilian Lemonade recipe will have you begging for more! Made with fresh limes (not lemons!) and finished off with sweetened condensed milk, this classic Brazilian drink will become your new favorite!
First things first.
Why is it called Brazilian Lemonade when there are no lemons?
Ever since I first found this recipe in the Our Best Bites cookbook, I have been intrigued. And a little confused. Afterall, it’s called “lemonade.” Shouldn’t it use lemons instead of limes?
At first, I thought that maybe the words for “lemon” and “lime” were the same in Portuguese. But this is not true. So what could be the answer?
It turns out that the word lemonade is used since lime is known as Tahitian lemon (Portuguese: limão-taiti) in Brazil. (Wikipedia)
Thank you, Wikipedia.
So what exactly is in Brazilian Lemonade?
Brazilian Lemonade Ingredients
- Water
- Sugar
- Limes
- Sweetened Condensed Milk
That’s it! Making this amazing drink does take a little more effort than other drinks you may have had, but it is SO worth it.
Equipment to Make Brazilian Lemonade
- Cutting Board
- Knife
- Blender
- Large Mesh Strainer
- Large Bowl
- Pitcher
How to Make Brazilian Lemonade
Here’s where the fun starts 🙂
Get four large juicy limes. (My limes were smaller, so I used five limes). Try to buy limes with thin skin. Thick skin=lots of pith (the white, bitter part between the outer skin and the inner fruit).
Wash the limes with soap and water to get rid of any wax or pesticide residue. We’re using the whole lime, skin and all!
After washing the limes, cut both ends off the limes and discard the ends.
Now cut the limes into eight wedges. I just cut each lime in half, and then cut each half into four wedges.
Now you’re going to mix six cups of very cold water with one cup of sugar. (You may want to do this beforehand and just keep the sugar water in the refrigerator until ready to use).
Add half of the limes to a blender along with half (or slightly less than half) of the sugar water.
Now you’re going to pulse the blender five times. I ended up holding the pulse button for about two seconds each time. When you are done, your limey sugar water will look like this:
Now place your large mesh strainer over a large bowl and pour your limey sugar water into the strainer.
Press down on the lime pieces with a wooden spoon to really try to extract as much juice as possible.
Throw the remaining lime pieces into the trash and place the now empty strainer back over your bowl. You need to do all this again with the second batch of lime pieces and sugar water!
(So add the rest of the lime pieces to the blender along with the sugar water, pulse, and strain).
Now pour all your strained liquid into your serving pitcher and add 6 tablespoons (1/4 cup plus two tablespoons) of sweetened condensed milk and stir.
Serve right away with lots of ice.
When my daughter tasted this for the first time, she said, “Mmmm. This is delicious! Lemonade stands in Brazil must be really successful!”
Indeed!
This does not keep well, so don’t prepare until just before you are ready to serve.
(If you are in a pinch, you can prepare everything and chill beforehand, waiting until just before serving to add the sweetened condensed milk).
This recipe adapted from Brazilian Lemonade in Our Best Bites: Mormon Moms in the Kitchen.
See all my other awesome drink recipes here!
Brazilian Lemonade
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 6 cups cold water
- 4-5 limes (thin-skinned limes are best)
- 6 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
Instructions
- Mix the one cup of sugar and the 6 cups of water in a large pitcher. Place in the refrigerator to chill.
- Wash the limes with soap and water to remove wax and pesticide residue. Rinse well.
- Cut off both ends of each lime and discard the ends.
- Cut each lime into eight wedges.
- Add half the lime wedges and half the sugar water to a blender and pulse five times.
- Place a large mesh strainer over a large bowl. Pour the lime/sugar water mixture into the strainer. Press down on the lime pieces with the back of a spoon to extract the most juice. Discard the lime pieces in the strainer.
- Add the remaining lime wedges and sugar water to the blender and repeat.
- Pour the lime/water mixture from the large bowl into your serving pitcher.
- Add the 6 tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk.
- Serve immediately over ice.
Notes
This does not keep well, so don't make it until just before you are ready to serve it. If necessary, you can make it beforehand, but just wait until right before serving to add the sweetened condensed milk.
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