Beat the Heat this Summer with Iced Tea

As temperatures hit the 90s, customers at in Fenton have switched from hot tea to iced tea. No surprise, considering iced tea has been a favored summer drink since the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis. While some may dispute that iced was invented there, it certainly was re-invented and popularized at the Fair.

Regardless, whether you prefer your iced tea sweetened or unsweetened, it's among summer's most refreshing thirst quenchers.

June is National Iced Tea Month. To celebrate, brew a batch of iced tea instead of buying the pre-bottled varieties. It’s easy - no matter which brew method you use.  Sun tea is making a comeback. However, it does require a few extra steps to ensure safe brewing since bacteria growth can be an issue. When making sun tea there are two rules: 1. Use a clean sanitized container. 2. Don’t leave sun tea set out in the sun too long.

To safely make sun tea add four cups of cold water, preferably filtered, to a sanitized container. Place five tea bags in the jar and cover or cap lightly. Use black tea since herbal or green teas since they can be more susceptible to bacteria growth. Place in direct sunlight for two to four hours, depending on the strength you like. Do not allow to brew longer than four hours. Remove tea bags and discard them. Pour over ice to serve. If not using tea immediately, store in the refrigerator. Make only the amount of tea you need for the day.

Another easy method is to cold brew. Simply fill a container using the same amounts of water and tea bags as in sun brewing. Place the filled tea jar in the refrigerator for eight hours. Remove and discard the tea bags and serve over ice.

Southern sweet tea is the ultimate summer classic. To make it right you have to know the trick, dissolving the sugar in the hot tea before its iced. To make real southern-style sweet tea stir in the amount of sugar you need to satisfy your sweet tooth into the hot brewed tea and stir until it completely dissolves.

Here’s my sweet tea formula: Bring four cups of water to a boil, add four tea bags and 1/2 cup sugar and stir to dissolve. Remove from the heat and brew about 15 minutes and pour over ice.

To help celebrate National Iced Tea Month, Lipton Tea, which has been providing St. Louisans tea for icing since 1904, offers a few recipes to help readers stay cool all summer long. For more recipes visit: www.lipton.com 

Citrus Tea Punch

• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 Lipton Iced Tea Brew Family Size Tea Bag
• 1 1/2 tablespoons honey
• 2 cups orange juice
• 2 cups chilled seltzer
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 medium orange, sliced
• 1 lemon, sliced
• 1 lime, sliced
• mint sprigs, optional garnish

Pour boiling water over tea bag, cover and let brew five minutes. Remove tea bag and squeeze bag. Stir in honey; chill. Combine tea, orange juice, seltzer and lemon juice in a large pitcher, stir in fruit slices. Serve over ice, garnished with mint, if desired.

Mango Iced Tea

• 4 cups boiling water
• 4 cups cold water
• 1 (12-ounce) can mango nectar
• 2 Lipton Iced Tea Brew Family size Tea bags
• 5 tablespoons sugar

Pour boiling water over tea bags and brew fore five minutes. Remove tea bags and squeeze. Combine tea with the remaining ingredients in a 2-quart pitcher. Chill. Serve over ice. Makes eight servings.

The Arnold Palmer 

• 4 cups iced tea (fresh brewed)
• 4 cups lemonade (homemade or bottled) 
• cracked ice
• sprigs of mint or lemon slices, optional for garnish

Fill a 16-ounce glass with cracked ice. Pour over ice one cup of iced tea followed by a cup of lemonade. Garnish with mint or a lemon slice. Makes four glasses. (Recipe provided by Suzanne Corbett)