Summertime Citrus Iced Tea
Prep Time:
10 mins.
Yield:
2 quarts
Strong Southern iced tea blended with lemon and orange juices, with extra zing from orange and lemon zest. Makes a delightful brunch drink!
Ingredients
- 1 large navel orange
- 1 large lemon
- 5 ½ cups cold water, divided
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 Luzianne® Family Size Iced Tea bags*
- 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice, chilled
- Lemon wheels and oranges wedges for garnish, optional
Directions
- Using a vegetable peeler remove the zest from the orange and the lemon. Set aside. Reserve the fruit for another use.
- Prepare citrus syrup: Add the orange zest and lemon zests, 1 cup water and sugar to a small saucepot. Stir. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook until sugar is dissolved, about 90 seconds. Set aside to steep for 20 minutes. Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the solids from the liquid, pressing on the solids with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard solids. Place syrup in refrigerator to cool.
- While the syrup is cooling make a strong tea. In a pitcher, steep 2 tea bags in 2 cups boiling water for 10 minutes.* Remove and discard tea bags. Add the remaining 2 ½ cups water.
- Add the lemon and orange juices and the citrus syrup to taste, ½ to 1 cup; stir. Chill and serve over ice with orange and lemon wheels if desired.
To make a refreshing cocktail punch, replace 2 cups of the cold water with 2 cups of chilled gin.
*Alternatively, steep 2 bags of Luzianne® Cold Brew Iced Tea in 2 cups cold water for 10 minutes.
