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Frosted Lemonade is the creamy, slushy drink that turned our last Chick Fil A run into a full blown obsession, so I cracked the copycat at home. It is just fresh lemonade blended with vanilla ice cream until it is part milkshake, part lemonade, and completely addictive. I whipped these up on a blazing hot afternoon when Maddie and Lizzie needed something cold, and they swore it beat the drive thru. If you love our copycat Wendy’s Frosty, this tart twist is next.
With just four ingredients and a blender, this copycat Chick Fil A frosted lemonade comes together in minutes for a fraction of the drive thru price.
Frosted Lemonade Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 5 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 5 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 50 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 2 servings
- ⚡ Calories: 1145kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Sweet, tart, and creamy like a lemon milkshake
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with our copycat Wendy’s Frosty
Quick Answer
To make Chick Fil A Frosted Lemonade at home, first cook a quick lemonade by stirring sugar, fresh lemon juice, and water in a saucepan until the sugar dissolves, then chill it completely. Add scoops of vanilla ice cream to a blender, pour in the chilled lemonade, and blend until smooth and frosty. Pour into glasses and serve right away. The result is a thick, creamy, tart and sweet frozen lemonade that tastes just like the drive thru version for a fraction of the cost.
Jump to:
- Frosted Lemonade Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Frosted Lemonade
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Frosted Lemonade FAQs
- Other Recommended Easy Drink Recipes
- Copycat Chick-fil-A Frosted Lemonade
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Fresh lemon juice tastes like the original. Real squeezed lemons give a bright, tart flavor that bottled juice cannot match, which is the secret to a true copycat frosted lemonade.
- Dissolving the sugar first prevents grit. Cooking the sugar into a quick lemonade syrup means no undissolved granules, so the final drink is perfectly smooth.
- Chilling the lemonade keeps it thick. Adding warm lemonade would melt the ice cream. A fully chilled base keeps the frosted lemonade thick and frosty.
- Vanilla ice cream does double duty. It adds the creamy milkshake body and just enough sweetness to balance the tart lemon.
- A blender gives that signature texture. Blending the ice cream and lemonade together creates the smooth, spoonable, sip able consistency Chick Fil A is known for.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It tastes just like the Chick Fil A original for a fraction of the price, with no drive thru line.
- You only need four simple ingredients and a blender to make this frosted lemonade.
- It is the ultimate hot weather treat, just like our refreshing cherry limeade.
- It earns a spot in the rotation right next to our lemonade recipe.
Key Ingredients
Just four everyday ingredients stand between you and a copycat frosted lemonade.
- Fresh Lemon Juice: Freshly squeezed lemons are the star and give that bright, tart flavor. Bottled juice works in a pinch but tastes less fresh.
- Granulated Sugar: It sweetens the lemonade base and balances the tartness of the lemon.
- Water: It rounds out the lemonade syrup so the lemon is bright, not puckering.
- Vanilla Ice Cream: Use a good quality vanilla for the creamiest, most milkshake like frosted lemonade. The richer the ice cream, the thicker the drink.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
This frosted lemonade is easy to make your own.
- Frosted strawberry lemonade: Blend in a handful of fresh or frozen strawberries for a fruity twist.
- Make it boozy: Add a splash of vodka or limoncello for an adults only frozen cocktail.
- Swap the ice cream: Use vanilla frozen yogurt for a lighter version or vanilla bean for extra flavor.
- Frosted limeade: Use fresh lime juice in place of lemon, like our cherry limeade.
- Extra tart: Add a little lemon zest to the syrup for a more intense lemon punch.
- In the mood for something different? Our limeade scratches a similar itch.
How to Make Frosted Lemonade
- Add the granulated sugar to a small saucepan set over medium heat.
- Pour in the fresh lemon juice.
- Add the water and stir constantly until the sugar dissolves, about five minutes. Remove from the heat, cool to room temperature, then chill in the fridge for about thirty minutes.
- Add the scoops of vanilla ice cream to a blender.
- Pour the chilled lemonade over the ice cream.
- Blend until smooth and frosty, then pour into glasses and serve immediately.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Use freshly squeezed lemon juice for the brightest, most authentic frosted lemonade flavor.
- Chill the lemonade completely before blending, or the warmth will melt the ice cream and thin the drink.
- Do not over blend, or the frosted lemonade turns runny. Blend just until smooth.
- For a thicker drink, add an extra scoop of ice cream or a handful of ice.
- Adjust the sweetness by tasting the cooled lemonade and adding a little more sugar if your lemons are very tart.
- Serve immediately, since frosted lemonade is best enjoyed fresh and frosty right out of the blender.
- Make it a full spread. Our easy hibiscus tea rounds out the table.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
Serve this frosted lemonade in tall, chilled glasses with a fun striped straw and a lemon wheel on the rim for that classic Chick Fil A look. It is the perfect cool down on a hot day or a fun treat with lunch.
It pairs beautifully with savory copycat favorites. Serve it alongside chicken sandwiches, fries, or nuggets for a full fast food night at home, and balance it with something rich like our iced caramel latte for the coffee lovers.
Setting up a summer drink bar? Serve this frosted lemonade next to our cherry limeade, a pitcher of strawberry limoncello slush, and a copycat Wendy’s Frosty so there is a frozen treat for everyone.
Frosted Lemonade FAQs
A Chick Fil A Frosted Lemonade is made from their fresh squeezed lemonade blended with vanilla Icedream. This copycat frosted lemonade recreates it with a simple homemade lemonade and vanilla ice cream.
A blender gives the smoothest texture, but you can use a food processor or even an immersion blender in a deep cup. The goal is to blend the ice cream and chilled lemonade into a thick, frosty drink.
For a thicker frosted lemonade, add an extra scoop or two of ice cream, use less lemonade, or toss in a small handful of ice before blending.
Yes. If you are short on time, blend chilled store bought lemonade with vanilla ice cream. Homemade lemonade tastes fresher, but bottled works for a quick frosted lemonade.
Frosted lemonade is best served fresh, since it melts quickly. You can make and chill the lemonade base ahead, then blend with ice cream right before serving.
This homemade frosted lemonade is rich because of the ice cream. You can lighten it up by using frozen yogurt or a lower calorie vanilla ice cream if you prefer.
Still filling out the menu? Readers love pairing this one with our watermelon vodka slushies, homemade lemon simple syrup, lemonade tart, and frozen yogurt bites.
And when you are planning next week’s dinners, our peach tea and tropical fruit salad keep the same easy comfort going.
Copycat Chick-fil-A Frosted Lemonade
Ingredients
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup lemon juice fresh squeezed
- ½ cup water
- 8 scoops vanilla ice cream
Instructions
- Place the sugar, lemon juice, and water in a small saucepan over medium heat.½ cup granulated sugar, ½ cup lemon juice, ½ cup water
- Stir constantly until the sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes.
- Take off the heat and let cool to room temperature, for 10 minutes.
- Place in the fridge for 30 minutes until chilled.
- Place the ice cream into a blender.8 scoops vanilla ice cream
- Add the lemonade mixture.
- Blend until smooth. Pour into glasses and serve.
Notes
- Use your favorite vanilla ice cream for this recipe.
- Make sure that you use real lemon juice, do not substitute for bottled.
- This recipe can be doubled to make more for others.
- Chick-fil-a does not garnish with whipped cream and cherries like their milkshakes but that would be a delicious addition to this frosted lemonade.
- Make an adult version by adding a shot per serving of vodka or rum!
Nutrition
Love This Recipe?
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All of the amounts are listed right before where you left this comment.
The “recipe” isn’t a recipe. There are no amounts listed with the ingredients!
vry good