Sunday Lemonade

Serve when

Pour it from a sweating pitcher as the family sits down — dinner starts when the glasses are full.

What to drink

Big Mama's table is a Sunday-after-church table, and its pitcher drink is lemonade — fresh-squeezed, plenty sweet, cold enough to fog the glass. It's the pairing that belongs to fried chicken the way hymns belong to Sunday morning.

What to drink

Sweet-tart and ice cold against hot, crisp, rich food — lemonade earns its permanent seat at the soul food table.

Ingredients

1 cup fresh lemon juice (6–8 lemons)
¾ cup sugar, dissolved in 1 cup hot water
4 cups cold water
Lemon wheels and lots of ice

Method

Make a syrup of the sugar and hot water; cool.
Stir together with the lemon juice and cold water in a big pitcher.
Chill, then pour over ice with lemon wheels.
Keep the pitcher on the table; Sunday dinner is long.