Strawberry Acai Lemonade (Starbucks Copycat)

Move aside, Starbucks—my copycat Strawberry Açai Lemonade Refresher recipe tastes just like the real thing, but at a fraction of the cost. This beautifully batchable pink drink is made with just 7 ingredients and 15 minutes of effort, bringing a week’s worth of puckery-sweet brightness to your cup!

If you loved my strawberry acai refresher recipe from last year, you’re going to love this extra citrusy twist with homemade lemonade. Like my other Starbucks refresher recipes, this juice-based drink is the perfect antidote when you need to rehydrate from a day in the sun, but water is too boring and iced coffee is too buzzy.

Best of all, my homemade strawberry acai lemonade is all-natural—it’s made with only real fruit, fruit juice, sugar, and water! So, not only do you not have to wait in line or tip, you also get to avoid all the questionable lab-made extras like “natural flavors” (which are anything but natural) and rebaudioside A. What the heck is that, anyway? 🤨 Hooray for homemade!

Love fancy iced strawberry drinks? Check out my iced strawberry matcha latte, fresh strawberry iced tea, and iced strawberry latte next! 

Jump to:

• What does it taste like?
• Why You’ll Love This Starbucks Lemonade Refresher Recipe
• Ingredients Needed
• Substitutions
• How To Make Starbucks Strawberry Açai Lemonade At Home
• Optional Variations & Dietary Adjustments
• Serving Suggestions
• Recipe Success Tips
• FAQs
• DIY Strawberry Açai Lemonade Nutrition
• Other Starbucks Refresher Recipes
• Strawberry Acai Lemonade (Starbucks Copycat)

What does it taste like?

Imagine making the strawberry acai refresher with lemonade instead of water. You get all the bright, juicy flavor of strawberries and passion fruit with that tangy pop of acai berries, but with an extra sunshine-y boost from the sweet-tart lemonade. It has just the right amount of sour notes—enough to make you pucker and squint a smidge on the first sip—but is sweet enough to smooth out the edges and keep you coming back for more!

Why You’ll Love This Starbucks Lemonade Refresher Recipe

• One & Done - As with all my refresher recipes, this punchy pink sipper makes enough for 4 drinks. It’s also easy to double or triple so you can keep your fridge stocked with sweet summer flavors all week long.
• Budget-Friendly - While the individual components to make acai strawberry lemonade will set you back to the tune of 3-4 Starbucks drinks at the outset, you’ll only be using a miniscule amount of the sugar and fruit powders to make a batch. When you break down the cost by how much of each ingredient you use, a single serving costs less than half of what you’d pay in stores.
• Pretty in Pink - My kindergartener is going through a princess phase, so pink is very in. I can’t blame her, though—just looking at this magenta marvel is enough to put a smile on my face! And remember: that color is au naturel thanks to freeze-dried fruit! 

Ingredients Needed

• Water & White Grape Juice - Using white grape juice adds another layer of flavor to our refresher base while reducing the need for added sugar.
• Strawberries - Feel free to use fresh or frozen strawberries depending on the season and the price.
• Granulated Sugar - Plain white sugar has a neutral sweetness, allowing all the fruity goodness to shine. We’ll use it in both the refresher base and the homemade lemonade.
• Lemon Juice - Whenever possible, reach for fresh citrus juice over bottled—it has a lighter, less bitter flavor because it doesn’t have the same level of lemon essential oil as the bottled stuff. We’ll use it in both the refresher base and the lemonade, so make sure you grab plenty.
• Açai Powder & Passionfruit Powder - These two freeze-dried fruit powders add tons of fruity flavor without the hassle of processing them (or having to find them in the first place!). 
• Citric Acid - This is the same stuff they use to dust the outside of Sour Patch Kids—it’s super tart. Just a little bit will go a long way! Don’t worry about finding ways to use up the bag—it’s used in nearly all my refresher recipes and is a common ingredient in canning.

Substitutions

• White Grape Juice - Apple juice has a more pronounced flavor, but you can use it if needed—the strawberry lemon flavor profile has enough oomph to stand up to it.
• Strawberries - Feel free to swap in another type of berry like raspberries or blackberries.
• Granulated Sugar - You’re welcome to use the sweetener of your choice, but note that not all are created equal. Some are much sweeter than table sugar, so adjust the amount you add as needed.
• Lemon Juice - Fresh lime juice would also be excellent! (Strawberry acai limeade sounds yummy, right?)
• Açai Powder - While acai has a particularly puckery punch, you can swap in other freeze-dried fruit powders like strawberry or blackberry if needed.
• Passionfruit Powder - Mango or pineapple powder would be the closest substitutes.
• Citric Acid - If you don’t have any on hand, look to your spice cabinet. Cream of tartar, also known as tartaric acid, is a great substitute. Just use slightly less than is called for.

How To Make Starbucks Strawberry Açai Lemonade At Home

Step 1: Combine water, grape juice, strawberries, and sugar in a saucepan. 

Step 2: Simmer the strawberry mixture for 10 minutes. Make sure to stir a few times in the beginning to dissolve the sugar. 

Step 3: Strain the berries out from the juice. Put the juice back in the saucepan.

Step 4: Heat the strawberry juice over medium-low heat. Add the lemon juice, açai powder, passionfruit powder, and citric acid to the saucepan, stirring frequently until everything is mostly dissolved. (You’ll still see some specks of the açai powder—that’s normal.)

Step 5: Chill. Pour the strawberry açai refresher base into a mason jar, then cover and cool in the fridge. 

Step 6: Add ice and sliced strawberries to a glass. Pour in the lemonade. 

Step 7: Mix in the strawberry açai refresher base, stirring to combine. Serve & enjoy!

Optional Variations & Dietary Adjustments

• Reduced Sugar/Added Sugar-Free - White grape juice has naturally occurring sugars, so swapping in a cup-for-cup sugar alternative (e.g. monk fruit) will reduce the sugars, but not eliminate them. If you’re diabetic, try using diet grape juice to cut back even further. 
• Frozen Strawberry Acai Lemonade - Once mixed, freeze half of the strawberry acai lemonade into ice cubes. Blend the flavored ice, the berry lemonade, and a few frozen strawberries until the consistency is like an Icee.
• Caffeinated - If you order Starbucks refreshers in-store, they do have a bit of caffeine. If you want to add some kick, just add a bit of green tea extract or green coffee extract.

Serving Suggestions

• Strawberry Acai Palmer - Once you mix up the acai strawberry refresher with the lemonade, mix in an equal amount of iced tea—black tea, green tea, or caffeine-free hibiscus tea are all great choices! As a bonus, iced tea is super cheap, so this will make your Starbucks drink even more affordable.
• Sparkling Strawberry Acai Lemonade - Rather than using regular lemonade, swap in sparkling French lemonade for an effervescent twist. 
• Spiked Acai Strawberry Lemonade - Turn this tart treat into an adults-only affair by adding a tipple of your favorite spirit—vodka sounds like a good fit!

Recipe Success Tips

• Roll Your Lemons firmly on your work surface before slicing them open to juice them—this helps you get every last drop. Alternatively, buy lemons when they’re on sale and toss them into your freezer whole—after defrosting, they’ll be extra juicy!
• Freeze Your Glass for about 15-20 minutes before serving to keep your refresher extra frosty and refreshing. 
• Plan Ahead by making a double, triple, or quadruple batch of the refresher base—it’s just as easy to make as a small batch! It’ll keep well in the fridge for several days, or can be frozen for several months. This is also a good move if you’re hosting a shindig.
• Reduce Food Waste (and get the most from your grocery budget while you’re at it!) by tossing the spent lemon halves and strawberry hulls in a pitcher with water, then popping it in the fridge for 24 hours. Boom! Free fruit-infused water to slurp down after your fancy lemonade! Oh, and don’t toss those steeped strawberries, either—they’re great for spooning over ice cream or swirling into plain yogurt.

FAQs

DIY Strawberry Açai Lemonade Nutrition

As a juice-based drink with no dairy, this homemade refresher is basically just water and carbs! Each serving has 176 calories and 43 grams of carbs (41 of which are sugars). There is no fat or protein, and just 33 milligrams of sodium per serving. If you’d like to reduce the sugar and carb count, hop up to the “optional variations” section for instructions.

Aside from being pretty sugary, the relatively large quantity of fruit juice in the mix means you’re getting some nutrients in there. Lemons bring a big boost of immune-building vitamin C to the table, while acai is considered a “superfood” thanks to large quantities of vitamin A, anthocyanins, calcium, magnesium, iron, and potassium. 

Think of this drink like a better-for-you gatorade—it’s all-natural and a good source of electrolytes. In other words, feel free to enjoy a glass to rehydrate after a long day in the sun or a sweaty workout. Just make sure to switch over to a sugar-free drink like plain iced tea or water when you’re done so you don’t overdo it on the sugar!

Total nutritional content per serving is:

• Calories: 176 calories
• Total Fat: 0 grams
• Protein: 0 grams
• Sodium: 33 mg
• Carbohydrates: 43 grams
• Sugar: 41 grams

*This nutritional information is an estimate and calculated based on the ingredients used to create the recipe. The nutritional value of your ingredients may differ slightly. Furthermore, this food is not intended to prevent, diagnose, cure, or treat any disease.

Other Starbucks Refresher Recipes

xoxo Megan