When Life Gives You Lemons

Pack this detoxifying pomegranate lemonade from Flower Child for all your picnics this spring.

By Kat Barclay, Photo and recipe courtesy of Flower Child 

Pomegranate Chia Ginger Lemonade

Yields approximately 8 cups

Ingredients

5 medium-sized lemons

2 medium-sized limes

Pom pomegranate juice

1 cup dry chia seeds

1 cup unsweetened coconut water

Ginger root to taste

1/3 cup evaporated cane sugar (or more to taste)

Directions

1. Soak the chia seeds in the pomegranate juice overnight with a ratio of 2 tablespoons of chia seeds per every 20 ounces of juice. This allows the chia seeds to plump up and become easier to digest. (Helpful tip: Buy a 24-ounce bottle of Pom juice, pour a little off the top and add the chia seeds directly into the bottle. Give it a good shake and put it back in the fridge.)
2. Place the cane sugar in a mixing bowl or pitcher and add 2 cups hot water, whisking continuously to dissolve the sugar. Let the mixture cool.
3. In a separate bowl, juice the lemons and limes until they yield about 1/2 cup of lemon juice and a little more than 1/8 cup of lime juice.
4. Peel the ginger root with a spoon blade or peeler. Using a microplane or zester, shred the raw ginger directly into the lemon/lime mixture. (For ginger lovers, use approximately 2 tablespoons.)
5. Add the lemon, lime and ginger mixture to the water and sugar mixture. Whisk everything together.
6. Add the coconut water and whisk.
7. When you’re ready to serve, add cold water to the mixture until the desired amount of lemonade is reached.
8. Shake the chia mixture and pour it generously over the top of the pitcher.