Whenever I travel to California with my husband, one of our first stops is a Puerto Rican restaurant called Sol Food. They make the most incredible black beans served with rice, avocado, and your choice of either sweet or savoury plantains. I always have an enormous glass of their homemade limeade on the side. All the flavour profiles are activated and satisfaction drapes itself over your body. During these very hot days in Berlin I found myself longing for the refreshment of a glass of limeade, so I tried to replicate it. It’s a very simple recipe, it makes about 1 litre of lime syrup that you can then dilute with still or sparkling water to taste.
Limeade
600 g freshly squeezed lime juice (I left the pulp in but you can strain it if you prefer)
300 g sugar
300 g water
1/4 – 1/2 tsp fine salt
Combine the sugar, water and salt in a saucepan and set over a medium high heat. Bring to the boil and allow it to bubble away until the sugar and salt are dissolved. Combine with the lime juice and taste. It should be sweet at first but the acidity from the lime should swell and overtake the sweetness. Allow to cool and then transfer to a glass bottle or other suitable container you have on hand. Store in the fridge and then dilute to taste with still or sparkling water.