Hello, my beaming beauties!

We’re springing into summer soon, and before my favorite sunshine fruit disappears for the year, I want to share a delicious cocktail to help ensure the summer doesn’t start on a sour note!

It all starts with the Meyer lemon — a cross between a true lemon and a mandarin/pomelo hybrid. This sweeter citrus originated in China and was introduced into U.S. agriculture by Frank Nicholas Meyer in 1908 – hence the name.

The California Meyer lemon season begins in November and only lasts into May, and thankfully, my Grandma lets me pillage the Meyer Lemon tree in her backyard every time I visit!

After tasting my first Meyer lemon, I discovered that not all lemons are equal!

With a Meyer lemon, you get a sexy sweet flavor without adding any refined sugar, plus all of the awesome health benefits of drinking lemon juice. The juice of one lemon gives you 187% of your daily recommended serving of vitamin C + potassium, magnesium, copper, it’s a natural alkalizer for your inner cells and body, and has an atomic structure that aids the digestive process and eases indigestion.

Now with all the healthy facts said, sometimes a girl just needs a drink! One that makes you say “AHHHH” at the end of a long day.

And the beautiful part about this recipe is that it can easily be made sans alcohol for a delicious afternoon refresher that will hydrate you and keep you from reaching for a snack when you don’t need it.

So go forth and see what magic you can make when life hands you Meyer lemons!

Meyer Lemon + Mint Lemonade
(Makes 1 serving, multiply the recipe for more)

Ingredients:

• 1 ounce/shot of organic high-quality Vodka or Tequila (for a super skinny Cinco de Mayo marg!)
• 6-8 ounces of sparkling water
• a small handful of mint leaves, muddled (or cilantro or basil, my other favs!)
• Juice of 1 ripe Meyer lemon
• 1-2 teaspoons organic maple syrup (but only if you really need it!)

Directions:

1. Juice lemon and remove any seeds.

2. Combine lemon juice + mint (cilantro or basil) + vodka + maple syrup, if needed, with the sparkling water.

3. Pour over ice and garnish with fresh mint/cilantro/basil leaves.

Optional: Feel free to add other citrus fruits like ruby red grapefruit. Muddled berries or cucumber are delicious too.

If you try this out for Cinco de Mayo this weekend, post a pic on Instagram and tag me @theplantelife.

Cheers!

–

LOVE + sweet citrus!