Espresso & Lemonade Slushy

Before heading to the beach this summer, follow this step-by-step recipe guide for crafting a sweet, refreshing espresso & lemonade slushy drink with homemade vanilla syrup.

Photo by Huey Melendez

Dear coffee lovers,

Summertime’s just around the corner and that means it’s time for drinks at the beach! For a deliciously sweet, refreshing drink to enjoy while lounging in the beaming sunlight, the Espresso & Lemonade Slushy will be simply excellent.

Let’s get brewing! 👀

You’ll need

• A 12oz glass

• A light/medium roast coffee with a bright, tropical flavor profile

• An espresso machine, distribution tools, and tamp

  • Don’t have an espresso machine? No worries! You can use instant espresso or an Aeropress with a flow control extension to make faux-espresso

• A grinder for espresso

• An espresso chilling ball (this is optional, but it’ll keep your slushy, well…slushy)

• A scale to weigh your espresso input/output

• 8-10oz of pre-made lemonade

• A blender to incorporate your lemonade and cubed ice into a slushy

• Vanilla extract for your homemade vanilla syrup

Ingredients

• 1 double shot of espresso

• 1oz of homemade vanilla syrup (or the added flavoring of your choice)

• 4 servings of lemonade slushy mix:

  • 1 cup of lemon juice (freshly squeezed is best)

  • 1 cup of water

  • 1 cup of simple syrup

  • 4-6 cups of cubed ice (this will depend on the consistency you want)

Pro tip: Freeze any of the left over slushy mixture in an ice cube tray and blend the lemonade ice cubes at a later time if you’d like.

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Vanilla syrup recipe steps

1. Add 1 cup of boiling water to 1 cup of granulated sugar. This will make 2 cups of simple syrup.

2. Stir the boiling water and sugar mixture until the sugar is fully dissolved.

3. Set aside 1 cup of syrup to use for your lemonade.

4. Add ½ tablespoon of vanilla extract to the remaining 1 cup of simple syrup then stir it to incorporate.

5. Allow your vanilla syrup to cool, then it’ll be ready to use!

Lemonade slushy recipe steps

1. In a blender, add 1 cup lemon juice, 1 cup of simple syrup (or your preferred amount of sweetener), and start with 4 cups of cubed ice.

2. After blending, add 1 cup of cubed ice at a time until your slushy reaches the desired consistency.

3. Place your lemonade slushy mix in the fridge until your espresso shot is ready.

Espresso & lemonade recipe steps

1. Pull your espresso shots (I did 19g of ground coffee with a 38g output) over a chilling ball (if you don’t have one, let the espresso cool a bit), which should come out to about 1.5oz.

2. Fill a 12 oz glass with your lemonade slushy mixture leaving about an inch of space at the top of the glass for your syrup and espresso.

3. Add 1oz of homemade vanilla syrup into the glass.

4. Top off the drink with your freshly brewed espresso shot.

5. The espresso will rest at the top of the drink, so stir it into the lemonade slushy (after you’ve taken a moment to appreciate the visual of the separated espresso and lemonade slushy mixture, of course).

6. Garnish with a lemon peel and enjoy your slushy in the sunlight. ☀️

Photo by Huey Melendez

This slushy would be a perfect drink to batch out and bring to a beach hang. The vanilla syrup I used was great for cutting the bitterness from the lemonade. I’d also recommend exploring alternative slushy syrup flavors like raspberry or blueberry to make this drink even more interesting. Happy brewing!

Have a beautiful day,

Jon Hargreaves
Coffee Club Founder/Designer

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Editor: Lexi Deverich
Direction: Huey Melendez & Cortez Artis
Photography: Huey Melendez

Recommended equipment & ingredients

Continue reading for recommended products to make this recipe at home! 👀

Lower budget

• Suggested coffee: Ghost Rider Blend from Proud Mary for $17

• Vanilla extract: Vanilla Extract from Simply Organic for $12.49

• Glassware: 4x CAST Iced Tea Glasses / 12oz from Kinto for $28

• Espresso machine: Breville Bambino Plus for $499.95

• Espresso grinder: Baratza Encore ESP for $199.95

• Espresso scale: TIMEMORE Black Mirror Pro for $65

• Instant espresso: Craft Instant Espresso Multiserve from Blue Bottle for $25

• To make faux-espresso:

  • AeroPress Coffee Maker for $39.95

  • AeroPress Paper Micro-Filters for $9.95

  • AeroPress Stainless Steel Filter for $14.95

  • AeroPress Flow Control Filter Cap for $24.95

• Additional brewing equipment:

  • Coffee Alive Extract Chilling Ball for $19

  • Rhino Coffee Gear Black Tamper for $19.97

  • Normcore 0.25mm WDT Distribution Tool V2.1 with Stand for $29.99

  • Normcore Coffee Gravity Distributor Tool for $45.99