Citron au chocolat: Mix 1 cup chocolate syrup and 1 1/2 quarts reconstituted frozen lemonade concentrate. Chill until very cold; serve over ice, sprinkled with chocolate shavings, if desired. Don't say no until you've tried this. The chocolate flavor is not that pronounced. It mellows the lemonade and makes for a smooth, almost creamy, drink.
Pink apple lemonade: Combine 48 ounces cranberry juice cocktail, 4 cups apple juice and 1 (12-ounce) can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed. Stir in 1/2 cup water and 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice.
Almond and lime lemonade: Combine 4 cups cold water; 1 (12-ounce) can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed; 1 (6-ounce) can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed; 2 (6-ounce) cans pineapple juice; 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract and 1 teaspoon pure almond extract.
Rum runner's lemonade: Combine 1 (10-ounce) can frozen tropical fruit mixer concentrate, thawed; 1 (12-ounce) can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed; 4 1/2 cups cold water; and 1 1/2 cups dark rum. Serve over ice, or put 1 cup mixture in blender with ice and blend until the drink becomes slushy.
Serve immediately.
Lemon tricks
Selecting. When purchasing lemons, look for smooth skin with no blemishes.
They should feel heavy for their size.
Stock up. It's OK to stock up on lemons in bulk. Uncut ones keep well in the refrigerator for up to a month.
Juicing: Bring the fruit to room temperature before juicing. Even better, warm in the microwave 10-20 seconds to make the juice flow.
Gently roll the fruit on a countertop to loosen fibers before juicing, cut it in half crosswise and use a reamer to squeeze out the juice.
Citrus juice freezes well: If you're freezing it to prepare lemonade later, freeze it in 1 cup portions. For other uses, pour juice into an ice cube tray.
When frozen, empty the tray into a plastic bag and store in the freezer.
An average lemon produces about 3 tablespoons of juice. One pound of lemons, about five medium, yields about 1 cup of juice.
Garnishing: To make lemon garnishes, use a channel knife to remove long, thin strips of rind or a citrus zester for thin threads of peel.
Zesting: To grate lemon zest, use the smallest holes on a cheese grater or use a microplane zester. Like juice, zest also freezes well. - Sources:
"Lemonade" (Harvard CommonPress, $10.95) and "The Food Lover's Tiptionary (Hearst Books, $15)
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