In the South, we mean it when we offer you a tall glass of sweet tea—it is sweet! This is the real thing, infused with help from the hot sun and sweet enough to put a smile on anyone’s face. Make sure to add the sugar right after you bring the warm tea in from the sun so it’ll dissolve completely. Once the sweet tea is mixed, keep it refrigerated and discard it if it appears at all cloudy.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 8 cups; 6 to 8 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Wash a clear, glass pitcher in hot, soapy water and dry thoroughly. Place the tea bags in the pitcher and add the filtered water. Set in the full sun until the tea is nicely dark, 1 to 2 hours. Remove and discard the tea bags.
Step 2
Add 1/4 cup honey and 1/4 cup sugar and stir until completely dissolved. Taste and continue to add honey and sugar until the tea reaches the desired sweetness.
Step 3
Add the lemon slices to the tea and serve over ice. If not serving immediately, store in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days.
From Aunt Elsa’s Kitchen
Step 4
Just float the lemon slices in the tea; don’t squeeze the lemon juice into the full batch. The lemon juice alters the balance and acidity of the tea causing it to taste “off.” Of course, once the sweet tea is served, folks can squeeze the lemon into their own glasses if they’d like.
