Celebrate With Fresh StrawberryAde!
I’ll get on to telling you about how to make this incredibly easy and delicious Strawberryade drink but first a couple people have asked me about these glasses.
These are the glasses my Mama Reed used for her tea at every meal. They were considered very fancy glasses but Mama Reed never put them aside for special occasions. She considered each meal to be special and worthy of her best. “Always set your table like the President is coming to dinner” is her often quoted saying.
The interesting thing about these glasses is that they weren’t acquired in a fancy store or even the kitchen department at Dunavant’s or JCPenney, they came from the grocery store, filled with peanut butter. With ten children and all of the other folks who came by on any given day, Mama Reed amassed quite a collection (no doubt she had good use for all of that peanut butter, too!). I don’t have any of her original ones but I’ve managed to come across enough to use them at my table, although I only do so from time to time.
My kids love drinking out of these and I helped them understand the history behind them by finding an old advertisement for the glasses and peanut butter, which I have framed on my kitchen wall here at Bountiful. This ad is dated June, 1957.
Big Top glasses were plentiful in the South and for this reason are still pretty easily acquired at antique malls and on Ebay (see the bottom of this post).
This glass still has the original sticker, it’s a prized possession of mine and only cost me about $6.00. I usually try to spend my money on something with a meaning and a history to it rather than something new whenever I can.
Now what was I supposed to be posting about? Oh yeah…StrawberryAde.
And we’re off!~zoooooom~
You’re going to need: 16 ounces (or two cups) fresh strawberries, and a tub of pink lemonade Crystal Light.
That’s it. Honest.
Oh alright, some water as well but you should have that on hand.
You can also use generic sugar free pink lemonade mix such as Wal Mart brand.
You know my motto: “Go for the cheap!”.
Wash and cut the tops off of your strawberries. If a few make it into your mouth, I won’t tell. 🙂
Toss them into your blender.
This is my old Hamilton Beach blender. I’ve had it since they made dirt and it’s still going strong.
Puree that until it’s all good and liquified.
Put a few inches of water in a two quart pitcher.
I really wanted a glass pitcher for this tutorial but I don’t own one. I put off doing this for a few weeks as I looked every time I went out, hoping to find a deal. In the end, I didn’t find one for less than $8.00 and I felt guilty buying it (seemed frivolous) just to take a prettier photo of Strawberryade. So here we are, doing a tutorial in my usual plastic pitcher.
Jes’ keepin’ it real, y’all!
Add your Pink Lemonade mix to the water…
Stir that up til it is dissolved.
Stir in puree.
Fill the rest of the way with cold water and stir.
Serve over ice.
If you make this a few hours before, the seeds will fall to the bottom. If you serve immediately, you can strain the seeds out or just leave them like I do. It makes it look more authentic and fresh ~grins~.
This reminds me of a Strawberry Julius (from the old days) with a bit of a zesty kick to it! Strawberry is definitely the dominant flavor!
Ingredients
- 16 ounces fresh strawberries
- 1 Tub Crystal Light Pink Lemonade
Instructions
- Wash and remove tops from strawberries. Place in blender and puree until fully liquefied. Fill two quart pitcher halfway with water. Stir in drink mix. Add strawberry puree and fill the rest of the way with cold water. Stir well. If strawberries aren’t sweet enough, you can add ¼ a cup of Splenda or to taste. I’ve never had to add Splenda!
- Serve cold, over ice.
You may also enjoy these punch recipes:
Strawberry Lemonade Concentrate
“Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all.”-Harriet Van Horne
Submitted by Amelia. To submit your quote (and make my day), please click here!
You can also freeze fresh blended strawberries in ice cube trays and then store in a plastic container in the freezer. That way, there’s always strawberries available for lemonade, smoothies, etc. no matter what time of year.
Christy, I have these same glasses, I didn’t know the history behind them. I have them in my china cabinet with my A&P Swirl Rose China that my grandmother bought with green stamps.
Oh my goodness, what treasures!!!! I would love to see a picture!
My grandma had those same glasses but I didn’t know the story behind their origin. (I was pretty young when she died…) Thanks for the trip back to her kitchen!
🙂
YOU ARE AS REFRESHING AS THE DRINKS
Oh my goodness, thank you Bernard!!!
Love this drink! It is my favorite summer time drink here in Texas. I am a big fan of Crystal Light. My favorite is the grape and peach tea.