Summertime usually brings iced tea into my list of refreshing beverages. A Simple Iced Tea that you can make using Mother Nature’s rays of sunshine is what my Aunt used to call “Sun Tea.”
It’s a very simple recipe. All you need is a sunny day, a glass container with lid, fresh drinking water, and a selection of tea bags. For a quart-sized container, I usually use 4 decaffeinated black tea bags along with two flavored tea bags. For a green tea, I use 4 decaffeinated green tea bags and two flavored light tea bags.
Just select your 2 bags of flavored teas, and use 4 bags of plain tea. I like to use peach or vanilla flavored tea bags for a nice refreshing taste. An old favorite, Constant Comment, appears once in a while and makes a fabulous sun tea.
Fill your container with water. Place the tea bags into the water, and dangle the tags over the side for easy removal later. Secure the lid onto the container. Set your container in direct sun for at least three hours, and longer if you like a stronger iced tea.
After the tea has “brewed”, bring the container inside and remove and discard the tea bags. You can either pour the warmed sun-brewed tea over ice in a tall glass and enjoy immediately or you can refrigerate the sun-brewed tea until it’s chilled and enjoy that way. Use within 5 days.
I’ve found that using flavored tea for all 6 bags can overwhelm and make the tea bitter. Trial and error will result in the best-tasting tea for you. If you use a larger container, be sure to use more tea bags.
Serve sweetened with your favorite sweetener, or enjoy as-is. Garnish with a slice of lemon, mint sprig, or a cherry depending on your selected tea flavor(s)!
Variations: Use whatever flavored bagged teas you like. Add some sweetener to the tea before refrigerating if you like a sweeter tea.
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