WHEN SPEAKING OF ICED TEA, "Truvy" (played by Dolly Parton), in Steel Magnolias, exclaimed "It's the house wine of the South!". Well, she wasn't kidding! If you live in the South, you will find iced tea on every corner. It's probably my favorite drink of all time. Now, most everyone in the Deep South favors sweet tea ("swayt tay"), and that's okay. As a child, however, I drank unsweetened iced tea. So, I have diverted a tiny bit from the traditional Southern preparation, but LOVE a good brewed iced tea, nonetheless.
Today has been quite a scorcher, so all I could think about was a cold glass of iced tea...and then I walked by my mint plant and had a change of plans. Not only did I want iced tea, I WANTED SOME ICED MINT TEA. You do NOT have to spend big bucks to have simple little pleasures like homemade mint tea. And, herbs of any sort are so easy to grow and keep here in the Deep South. (Right now I've got sweet basil, Greek oregano, mint and rosemary. I have some plans to add a few more in the next couple of weeks, so as soon as I'm finished, I'll post some pics of my kitchen garden.)
In the meantime, go grab some mint and serve yourself a big cold glass of mint "tay"--SHUGAH (Lucretia, that was for you sister!)!
The Wife's Mint Tea
2 family sized bags Lipton "Iced Tea Brew" tea bags
6-10 fresh mint leaves (washed and patted dry)
sugar or honey for sweetness (optional)
2 quarts of water
Place tea bags and the mint leaves in the desired pitcher. Bring water to a boil in a kettle or in a pot on the the stove (I use an electric kettle). Once boiling, pour water over the tea bags and the mint leaves and allow to steep for 5 minutes. (Add sugar or honey at this point if you are making sweetened tea. Mix thoroughly to dissolve.) Remove tea bags and allow tea to cool. Remove mint before serving. Garnish iced tea glass with a sprig of fresh mint. Enjoy!
