IMMB - Taste Tea!

This month A La Cuisine is hosting the Is My Blog Burning monthly event where the theme is "Tea".

With so many uses for, I went with a southern favorite- Iced Tea so appropriate for the heat wave we have been experiencing in not the south of the USA but instead Southern California.

Iced tea is a favorite which many would say is not limited to the south however, many in Carolina would say that the best iced tea can only be brewed in the south. Is it the water, a specific type of tea, simple sugar or what? I believe it's more the amount of sugar added which is lots. Southern Iced Tea is very sweet.

My mother in law recently sent us some large tea bags of what she labeled "S&D" tea. This is an orange pekoe and pekoe cut black tea.

To make my modified version of Ruth's Ice Tea, I filled a pitcher with room temperture water, added the large tea bag (equivaent to 4 regular sized tea bags) and let this sit in the sun for about an hour. In that I was first torn between lemonade to quench my thirst and iced tea, I decided to combine the two. Thus my modification to Ruth's recipe. I took two lemons and carefully cut lemon peel ringlets. I then squeezed the lemons for fresh juice. After removing the tea bag from the sun brewed tea, I added the lemon juice and the lemon peel. Because it is difficult to dissolve sugar in the tea, I made a simple syrup by combining equal parts sugar and water (1 cup of each) added to a sauce pan then placed over a medium heat to dissolve the sugar. After the dissolved mixture is cooled, it can be added to the brewed tea and lemon mixture to taste.

To serve, simply pour into glass filled with ice cubes. In line with the a taste of the south, use a canning jar for the glass.