I love iced tea; and with my Southern roots growing ever deeper, I've often pondered how to make "sweet tea" BETTER. It's always too sweet and I rarely taste any tea in it at all. So after a bit of trial and error--and offering glasses of my many flavors of iced tea to friends who really loved it; I finally decided to share one of my recipes.
Simple syrup is the key, and you can infuse it with just about anything. Using extracts and essential oils are two of the best ways to impart those special flavors and now that extracts and essential oils come in organic culinary grades, it more easy than you might think. Just remember to add it to your desired level of sweetness--keep in mind that less is more in this case!
Take a look at this recipe and and use it as a model for your own creative flavors. I'd love to hear about some of your iced tea capers! Happy drinking!
Simple Syrup
1 cup Organic Evaporated Cane Juice
1 cup Water
1 1/2 Tblsp. Organic Peach Extract
1/2 Cup Ginger Root (sliced coarsely)
Heat all these simple syrup ingredients in a medium saucepan together on medium high heat until sugar is completely disolved. Close the fire and let steep covered for one hour or until cooled. Strain through a fine strainer (into a container) and refrigerate.
Tea
3 1/2 Tblsp. Organic Loose Leaf Black Tea
(non-smokey variety)
2 Quarts Filtered Water
1 Sturdy (heat safe) Mixing Bowl w/ Spout
1 3 Quart Pitcher
1 Mixing Spoon
Place loose leaf tea in mixing bowl and set aside. In a large tea kettle, heat ~2 Quarts filtered water just until the whistle blows. Pour boiling water over the tea and cover with a plate being sure not to cover the spout opening so the tea has room to release steam. Let stand for about 1 1/2 hours until tea is cooled.
After cooling, pour tea through a fine strainer into a 3 Quart pitcher. Add simple syrup and stir well--to desired sweetness. Start with 1/2 cup of simple syrup, and add more as needed. Refrigerate for at least two hours for maximum chilling.
Add ice cubes just before serving to your guests and enjoy!
1/2 Cup Ginger Root (sliced coarsely)
Heat all these simple syrup ingredients in a medium saucepan together on medium high heat until sugar is completely disolved. Close the fire and let steep covered for one hour or until cooled. Strain through a fine strainer (into a container) and refrigerate.
Tea
3 1/2 Tblsp. Organic Loose Leaf Black Tea
(non-smokey variety)
2 Quarts Filtered Water
1 Sturdy (heat safe) Mixing Bowl w/ Spout
1 3 Quart Pitcher
1 Mixing Spoon
Place loose leaf tea in mixing bowl and set aside. In a large tea kettle, heat ~2 Quarts filtered water just until the whistle blows. Pour boiling water over the tea and cover with a plate being sure not to cover the spout opening so the tea has room to release steam. Let stand for about 1 1/2 hours until tea is cooled.
After cooling, pour tea through a fine strainer into a 3 Quart pitcher. Add simple syrup and stir well--to desired sweetness. Start with 1/2 cup of simple syrup, and add more as needed. Refrigerate for at least two hours for maximum chilling.
Add ice cubes just before serving to your guests and enjoy!
Happy Summer!
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