Elevate Fresh-Squeezed Lemonade With A Quick Air Fry

Few beverages evoke the essence of summer quite like a glass of ice-cold, freshly squeezed classic lemonade. While this drink is refreshing all by itself, it can take on an entirely new dimension of flavor with the smart use of ... an air fryer? It might sound a bit bizarre, but bear with us. When you air fry lemons tossed with some sugar and a splash of water, the fruit undergoes a pretty exciting change. The lemon's outer layer turns toasty, and the sugar you tossed in caramelizes, all while keeping the inside juicy. This caramelized sugar not only adds sweetness to the lemon but also softens its natural tartness. So, if you prefer your lemonade sweet, there's no need to pour in heaps of extra sugar — it's already included!

The result is a naturally sweet lemonade with a wonderful zesty scent and a touch of nutty, almost smoky aroma. The caramelization not only boosts the sweetness and tamps down the acidity, but also adds a subtle hint of bitterness, giving your lemonade a fancy twist you won't find in the usual stuff. In other words, it's as close to "gourmet lemonade" as you can get! If you're a fan of complex flavors — like the kind you find in Amari and bitters — and enjoy sipping on gin cocktails during the weekend, we assure you that you'll find yourself a summer favorite in this recipe!

Start by washing and quartering the lemons, then remove the pith and seeds. Keep the peel on; you'll love the zesty punch it'll add to the flavor. Next, toss the whole lemon quarters in sugar until they're nicely coated. Place them flesh-side down in the air fryer basket, then add just enough water to the basket to cover the bottom. Set the timer for fifteen minutes and the temperature to 350 F. When the timer beeps, flip over the lemons and cook them until they're nice and toasty with darkened edges and a nice layer of caramelized sugar browning the top of the golden flesh.

Set the toasted lemons to cool for a few minutes, then blend them in a high-powered blender with more sugar and water until you have a hazy, incredibly aromatic mixture (don't worry if you see lemon chunks floating in the blender, that's normal). Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve, and there you go. You now have a cup of air-fried lemonade.

To serve, you can add ice for a good, refreshing chill. If the lemonade ends up tasting a bit too strong, add some water to dilute it. And don't forget, in case you want to sweeten it, don't reach for the jar of sugar just yet. You can use the leftover simple syrup at the bottom of the air fryer to sweeten your lemonade au naturel!