Drinks & Beveragescreativecanning5.0
Watermelon Lemonade Concentrate
Watermelon lemonade concentrate captures the taste of peak-summer watermelon in a shelf-stable drink you can water bath can. Puree and strain the watermelon, heat the juice with bottled lemon juice and sugar, and you'll have jars ready to mix into watermelon lemonade any time of year.
👥 48 Servings⏱️ Prep & Cook: 30 min⏳ Prep: 10 min🔥 Cook: 10 min👤 Ashley Adamant📖 creativecanning
🥘 Ingredients
Check off ingredients as you prepare them:
🍳 Cookware
- ●blender
- ●pot
- ●spatula
📝 Preparation Steps
1
Before you start, prepare a water bath canner and bring the water up to a simmer, and wash your jars and lids in hot soapy water. Keep the jars hot until you fill them so they do not crack when they meet the hot concentrate. There is no need to sterilize, since the jars are processed for more than ⏱️ 10 minutes.
2
Make the watermelon juice. Cut the watermelon into large chunks and puree it in a blender, seeds and all. Pour the puree through a fine-mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth to strain out the seeds and pulp, and measure out the watermelon juice you need.
watermelon juice (puréed and strained* )6 cups
3
Combine the watermelon juice, bottled lemon juice, and sugar in a large pot. Stir well so the sugar begins to dissolve before the mixture heats up. Use bottled lemon juice and the full amount called for, since that acid is what makes this low-acid fruit safe to can.
watermelon juice (puréed and strained* )6 cupsbottled lemon juice (Don't use fresh)4 cupssugar6 cups
4
Heat the mixture over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the sugar has fully dissolved and it reaches 190°F. Do not let it boil, which can set some of the pectin in the lemon juice. A thermometer takes the guesswork out of it.
sugar6 cups
5
Ladle the hot concentrate into your prepared jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Run a bubble tool or thin spatula around the inside of each jar to release trapped air, then wipe the rims with a clean damp cloth.
6
Center a lid on each jar and screw the band down to fingertip tight. Load the jars into the canner, making sure they are covered by an inch or two of water.
7
Bring the canner to a full rolling boil, then process for ⏱️ 15 minutes, adjusting the time for your altitude (see notes). Start timing only once the water reaches a full boil.
8
When the time is up, turn off the heat and let the jars sit in the canner for ⏱️ 5 minutes before lifting them out. That short rest keeps the liquid from siphoning out.
9
Set the jars on a towel and leave them undisturbed for 12 to ⏱️ 24 hours. Do not retighten the bands while they cool, and you may hear them ping as they seal.
10
After cooling, check the seals by pressing the center of each lid. A sealed lid will not flex. Store sealed jars in the pantry, and move any that did not seal to the refrigerator to use first.
Nutrition Facts
calories
106 kcal
fat Content
0.2 g
serving Size
1 cup prepared
fiber Content
0.1 g
sugar Content
27 g
sodium Content
1 mg
protein Content
0.2 g
carbohydrate Content
28 g
saturated Fat Content
0.01 g
unsaturated Fat Content
0.02 g
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