Thursday, May 29, 2014

Iced Tea Recipe using Decaf with a hint of Orange spice.

Summer weather is here and that means making gallons of ice tea!   Every spring I have to do a trial and error method to remember how we like it... to save me from that next year here is my recipe.

Fill a 4 quart pan 2/3's  full of cold water and put on the stove to heat.
Remove the paper and tags from 7 tea bags and put them in the pot.
(6 decaf tea and 1 orange spice black tea like Stash or Constant Comment)
Place a lid on the pan and when it starts to come to a boil turn off the heat
Let it sit covered for about 15 minutes.
Fill a 1/2 measuring cup with sugar but not all the way, leave about an inch on the top. (We don't like it too sweet)
With a big spoon move the tea bags to one side and pour the sugar in so it doesn't hit the bags.
Scoop out the bags into the measuring cup.   Hold the spoon on the bags to pour off the tea but don't squeeze them,  it won't be bitter that way.
Throw out the tea bags or put them in the composting bucket.
Stir the tea to dissolve the sugar.
Pour most of it into a gallon size container, swish the remaining tea around the pan to get all the sugar.
  Then fill the same pan with cold water and add to the container until it is full.
Refrigerate.  I like making the tea at night so it's nice and cold in the morning.

Since we drink this all day I like using the decaf tea bags so we don't get too much caffeine. The orange spice tea gives it a great flavor.

I keep this and a big pitcher of lemonade (Aldi's frozen is good) in the fridge all summer.
It's perfect for a quick drink coming in from the garden.