On the way home from our most recent road trip, we stopped at a Panera for dinner. I generally drink iced tea when we are out anywhere but this time, after 12 hours in the car, something about the lemonades looked so refreshing.
I tried their Blood Orange Lemonade for the first time and it was so delicious! I checked the ingredients and thought they were an odd combo: Blood oranges, sugar cane, lemon juice, carrots, turmeric, citric acid and other natural flavors. Still, so good.
When we arrived home, I was craving that juice. I loved the bright color and the fresh taste was just screaming summer to me. I could imagine a pitcher of it on my back porch with my feet up. (This was clearly a dream because if I’m outdoors I’m rarely just sitting.)
I decided to try and make a copycat recipe of the Panera juice at home. However, right away I ran into a few problems.
- Citrus season is over and picking were slim on healthy looking citrus here.
- I couldn’t find Blood Oranges to save my life. I looked at three grocery stores and decided that if I couldn’t find them, there’s a good chance you won’t be able to either.
- The carrots in the Panera juice are probably some sort of sweetened, pureed carrot juice that is a recipe in and of itself. I decided that I didn’t want to make this overly complicated for myself or others so I opted to leave the carrots out. (After looking this up on the Panera website as I right, I am correct. The carrots are in the form of a puree and some sort of carrot juice.)
- Panera doesn’t detail out the “other natural flavors” so who really knows what combo of flavors helped to create the unique taste of their juice.
All that said, I ended up making a juice that I found seriously delicious and refreshing even if it isn’t an exact copy of the Panera juice. In fact, my juice was a little thinner in texture so maybe I even liked it better?
I gave a glass to my husband because he is my official recipe taster (Lucky man!). He was mowing the lawn so he downed it without even really tasting it.
“Refreshing,” he said.
“Uh, but did it taste good?”
He said it did, but I gave him a second glass later when he wasn’t hot and sweaty just to make sure he was telling the truth. He said it was a great summertime drink and happily drank another glass.
My daughter also drank a full two glasses. At about 6, she considers herself a lemonade expert but had no idea about the turmeric ingredient.
Speaking of which, I thought turmeric was an odd ingredient when I saw it listed on the Panera juice. However, I know it has been a sort-of buzz ingredient lately.
Turmeric is a yellow-ish spice that often give curry it’s color – hence my hesitation about seeing it in a lemonade. It’s been thought to have medicinal properties and science has started looking into it. This article from Healthline.com has the following claims:
- Tumeric has bioactive compounds with powerful medical properties.
- The compounds are called curcuminoids and the most important one is curcumin.
- Curcumin is the main ingredient in turmeric and has anti-inflammatory effects and is a strong antioxidant.
- It’s claimed the ingredients can lower your risk of heart disease, perhaps help to prevent cancer, help those fighting Alzheimer’s, help with arthritis, benefit those fighting depression and help in fighting age related illnesses.
To read the full article click here. To make the Orange Turmeric Lemonade recipe see below and let me know what you think.
I’m planning to bring this along to the 4th of July and make it for a birthday party later this summer. It’s for sure going to be a summer drink of choice for a while.
- Juice of 6 regular oranges (You can use blood oranges if you find them.)
- Juice of 5 lemons
- 4 cups of cold water
- ¾ cup – 1 cup of sugar (Start with ¾ and if you want more sweetness feel free to add the additional ¼ cup. We used ¾.)
- ½ tsp. of turmeric
- 2 or 3 cups of ice
- 2 additional oranges, sliced
- 2 additional lemons, sliced
- Juice your lemons and your oranges and combine in a large bowl
- Mix in your sugar and your turmeric. Whisk so that the sugar dissolves and the turmeric is dispersed. It won’t dissolve like the sugar will but will flavor the mixture just the same.
- Add in your water and whisk for a few minutes.
- Add the whole mixture to a pitcher or a drink dispenser with 2-3 cups of ice.
- Add in your sliced oranges and lemons.
- Serve cold or at least chilled.
I’m going to try adding some soda water to this too to make it a little bubbly. 🙂 It might also be good with champagne and a twist on the classic mimosa. I hope you try variations too! Happy summertime drinking, friends!
For more recipes, click here. For more drink recipes, click here.
That sounds so refreshing! I love lemonade, but I’ve never had it like that before. I have to give this a try.
I am definitely going to have to try this! I love lemonade and the benefits of this one cannot be beat.
This is brilliant! What a great idea! I am always looking for ways to add tumeric in my diet.
This looks perfect for summer! My kids love lemonade, I always try to keep some in the fridge for those really hot summer days. It is so refreshing!
This sounds delicious! When we were traveling a few weeks ago, I kept going for lemonade too even though I don’t drink it often. I’ve never tried it with oranges, I’ll have to get the ingredients before my beach trip in a few weeks!
I have heard so many wonderful things about turmeric. I need to give this recipe a try!
I bet blood orange lemonade is so yummy! It looks delicious and I love the addition of turmeric! Yum!
Turmeric is one of those things that have been added to my regimen for inflammation. This would be so perfect!
I’ve heard from so many doctors that tumeric is great! I really need to start using it because I have some health issues that would be better if I did. The lemonade is a great idea because the strong flavor makes the tumeric unnoticeable. Thanks for sharing!
I love Turmeric. I take it every single day. I can definitely tell when I don’t take it.
This sounds so refreshing! I’ve not really heard much about Turmeric before now, but now I have to read more on it. I love all the health benefits to this drink!
What a great idea, I am definitely making this for summer. Tumeric has great health benefits!
Smart idea and a great way to get a healthy and helpful herbal supplement that is all natural! The orange added to the lemonade is perfect!
I would have never thought to put turmeric into lemonade, what a great idea and way to get an extra healthy ingredient down our gullet ; )
I will definitely make this recipe soon, sounds amazing!
This looks delicious and refreshing! I have been trying to find ways to add turmeric into my diet and this will be one way for sure.
I really love lemonade. It helps refresh my body and I can lose weight by drinking it everyday. Thanks for recipe.
This looks so refreshing and perfect for summer! I would love to try more turmeric in my recipes.
This does sound and looks so refreshing! I love that it adds in a bit of turmeric, it does wonderful things for the body.
This looks so refreshing and chock full of nutrients. I use tumeric in savoury dishes. I have never tried it in a drink, I may just do this.
It looks so refreshing! Would be a favorite drink this summer!
Nothing hits the spot like lemonade in summer. This looks like a refreshing recipe that would be great for pool days.
This is wonderful! I’m trying to incorporate tumeric in my diet to help with joint paint. I picked up some honey with tumeric in it at the Farmer’s Market a few weekends ago, I’m glad I found another recipe to make with it.
This looks so yummy! I never thought to mix anything with my lemonade so i’ll definitely have to give this a try !
This looks and sounds so incredibly refreshing!!!
I love lemonade and it’s definitely my summer drink but I wouldn’t have thought to add turmeric to it! Sounds like a wonderful addition!
Oh, I need to make this. My daughter and I would drink this right up.
This looks so good! My dad has been in a lot of pain and the dr recommended turmeric. This looks like a great way to get a little extra!
I’ve heard so many good things about Turmeric. I should try it out and make your refreshing drink so I get the benefits too.
Oh, this looks super yummy. I will definitely have to try this. I love trying new recipes!!
Turmeric is super good for you, so I bet there are so many benefits to this lemonade. I would love to try this plus the color is so vivid.
I have got to try this drink. It has some amazing ingredients!
This looks delicious! It is a very refreshing option for the heat!
I also made a pretty similar recipe with turmeric and orange! This drink is perfect for summer months.
Wow turmeric has health benefits and anti-inflammatory properties. So innovative to use it in a drink
I love the health benefits of tumerick. This looks so tasty and I love that it’s so healthy for you in so many ways.
Your pictures are amazing! I definitely want to try to make this since it looks so delicious.
Does it taste a good add it looks? Its beautiful!