Iced Tea with a Twist

I’ve been feeling neglectful of my readers since DH and I were traveling rather more than usual lately and I haven’t posted so much. (A post will soon be coming, please G-d, about our most recent stay). So here you go, a second post in one week.

I prepared this since DH wanted something cold and he is a tea person, so I said let’s have some iced tea. This little gem is so fun and easy, alcoholic or not as you choose (I served DH the virgin iced tea and made mine the alcoholic version, to each his own I say!) but either way this is amazingly refreshing and yum and not too much sugar in there so relatively guilt free. Once made, it keeps well in the fridge and you can take nips here and there. For the virgin version (little tongue twister there) it’s a mere 3 ingredients and 1 more for the boozy one. Yep, yep, so let’s do this!

Don’t have Cointreau? Use any orange flavored liquor. Don’t want it boozy? Just skip it altogether and it will still be great. Now take a very sharp peeler and carefully peel about 3 long strips of orange peel from your scrubbed orange. Make sure you only use the outer part of the peel with as little of the white pith as possible since it’s bitter.

Place the strong tea bags, (I used Tetley, my personal fave, although you can use any good strong tea for this), into a liter/quart bottle or pitcher, along with the orange peel and sugar. I suggest sticking to the amount of sugar I’ve written. It’s a hint of sweet without being cloying.

Now pour in about 1/4-1/3 of a cup of boiling water to help dissolve the sugar and brew the tea. Swirl the bottle around to help with this. Let the mixture sit for about 4 minutes (proper brewing time). K.

Add ice and cold water and then fish out the tea bags (you don’t want them in longer or they get a nasty “stewed” flavor). I find it easier to remove the tea bags after adding the liquid since they rise a bit – I use a wooden spoon both to remove the bags and stir the iced tea.

Now you can drink it right away, or let sit with the orange peel in the fridge for about an hour (okay, 1/2 an hour if you’re really impatient) and then add the liqueur or not as you please, and the amount you see fit. I was in the mood for a mild effect one evening so I put one tablespoon per tall glass of iced tea but if you want a stronger effect, 2 tablespoons will certainly do the trick. If you have a crowd who is in the mood for the alcoholic version, simply pour in the liqueur directly into your pitcher and stir it up before serving. Fill the glass with ice, garnish with a slice of orange and pour the tea over and place a pretty straw in it. L’Chayim!

Iced Tea with a Twist

2 strong tea bags such as Tetley (if you have weaker bags, use 4 tea bags)

1 whole orange (for the peel and for garnish), scrubbed

3 rounded (not heaping) tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4-1/2 cup of Cointreau or other orange liquor, if using alcohol

Directions:

Using a very sharp peeler, peel 3 big strips from the orange, using as little of the white pith as possible since it’s bitter. Place into a quart/liter jar or pitcher the tea bags, orange peel and sugar. Add 1/4 to 1/3 cup boiling water and swirl around until sugar dissolves. Let tea brew for about 4 minutes (don’t do longer or the tea gets a nasty “stewed” flavor). Add water and ice and stir with a long spoon, fishing out the tea bags and discarding them. Best to let tea infuse in fridge for about an hour, but half an hour is fine. Add the liquor to the pitcher just before serving, if desired. Fill glass with ice, garnish with a slice of orange and pour tea over ice.