• 12 lemons

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 cup water

• 1 vanilla bean

• 2 cups sparkling water or seltzer

• ice

• blossoms

Heat the oven to 425. Cut 11 lemons in half (save one for garnish) and throw them in a pan (or two, if you don’t have a big enough one) cut side up. Pour the water in the bottom of the pan and the sugar on top of the lemons.

Cut the vanilla bean down the middle lengthwise with a small knife, then scrape out the seeds, etc. that are inside the bean. Throw the inside bits, as well as the scraped out bean in the bottom of the pan with the water.

Roast it all up for 30-45 minutes, really until you start to see some brown crispy parts - you want it to actually look roasted.

Once it’s roasted, let the lemons cool a bit so you can handle them. Working over a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl, use a lemon juicer/reamer to get as much of the pulp and juice out of each half as possible. Press as much as the liquid through strainer as you can until you are left with all the lemony vanilla sweet goodness in the bowl. Add any liquid left in the pan as well.

Fill each glass with ice. Measure out 1/2 cup of the lemon mixture into each glass, and top with sparkling water. Garnish with a slice of lemon and a blossom. Love your life.

Want to make it pink lemonade? Splash in some cranberry juice.

Makes 8 servings