Share Fresh Mint Sun Tea with Friends

Glorious summer is definitely a time for hangin' on the deck with friends with a cool drink in hand while the birds chirp and dogs and kiddos romp.

Here's a super simple way to have Mama Nature do the work to brew your own DELICIOUS sun tea for those lovely afternoons. 

Because, as a family, we are making an effort to steer clear of plastic in the kitchen, we use a large glass jar with a latch top.

 Simply fill the jar with your drinking water.

Next, choose whichever type of tea you enjoy. I often use six standard Lipton teabags. Sometimes I blend 3 regular Lipton teabags with 3 decaffeinated bags, if I plan to drink iced tea in the evening hours. Of course, you can use any type of tea that tickles your fancy!

 Gently dunk your teabags into the water in your jar.

For convenience, I loop the strings from the bags onto the metal of the jar lid. This way, I don't have to dip my hand into the water to extract them when the tea is ready.

 We have yummy mint growing in our yard, so I always run out to grab some to infuse with my sun tea.

Fresh mint growing in the yard. Mmmmm!

Pull off the top portions of about 4-5 stalks of healthy mint.

I use the tops sections of mint to infuse with the tea.

Rinse the mint with water to remove any dirt, and then dunk it into the top of your jar. You can also add a bit of sugar, if you are so inclined. 

Rinse mint with clean water.

Add to jar.

 Close and latch the lid to your jar and bring it outside to brew.

Sun tea ready for SUN!

I leave the jar on my deck to brew for about 4-6 hours, depending on how strong I would like it to be. Within moments, you can see the tea starting to seep into the water.

Leave in direct sunlight for 4-6 hours.

After about an hour, you will see a warm golden color spreading through your jar. 

This tea will be ready in a few more hours.

When the color of your tea is a consistent, deep amber, it's ready! Remove your teabags and mint, refrigerate and enjoy!

When tea is ready, remove teabags from the water.

And then extract the mint as well.

Ready to be refrigerated. 

 Store your sun tea in the refrigerator. Call your buddies over for refreshments and relaxation.

 Serve with ice and perhaps a decorative little mint garnish! Ba-ZANG!

Mint garnish, anyone?

Or if you like a lil' tang in your life, a lemon slice adds just the right amount of ZING! You know you're thirsty already, aren't you?

Lemon pizazz!

Quench your thirst with this simple do-it-yourself summertime beverage and enjoy a little relaxation with some good company. Here's to ya! Cheers!
XOXO From My Hearth to Yours