Flavored Iced Tea

I finally convinced my husband to quit drinking pop/soda, but, because he doesn't like plain water I had to find a substitute thirst quencher.  So I started keeping a pitcher of iced tea in the fridge.  I got the idea to make a flavored tea  which contained cinnamon.  It only takes a few minutes (most of which is steeping time) to make a 2-quart pitcher.  Here is how I do it:

Cinnamon Tea

1.  Heat 2 cups of water in a glass measuring cup (or container of your choice) in microwave for 2 minutes.

2.  Remove and add 1 family size tea bag or 4 regular size tea bags (regular or decaf).  You can add another tea bag if you like a stronger tea.

3.  Add 1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon and let it brew for 5 minutes.  I put my cinnamon in a T-sac,*   (Alternately, you could also pour the brewed tea through a fine mesh strainer.)

4.  Fill a 2-quart pitcher halfway with ice cubes.  Remove the tea bag and cinnamon from the tea and pour it into the pitcher.  Fill to the top with cold tap water.  Tea is ready to drink!

Pretty simple and a different flavor that regular iced tea.  And, if you drink a lot of tea, a lot cheaper than those herbal teas you can buy at the grocery store.

Lavender Tea

Another alternative to cinnamon tea that I made recently is lavender iced tea.  I ran across a package of dried lavender flowers that I had purchased a while back and forgot about.  I made it exactly like the cinnamon except I used a rounded teaspoon of the dried lavender flowers (adjust to your liking).  Lavender tea has a nice smooth taste.

I have a lavender plant that I put in about a month ago.  When it starts blooming, I will save the flowers for my tea.

Hibiscus Tea

Next on my list.  I have some flowers blooming right now!  Supposed to be good for lowering your blood pressure too.





Lemongrass Tea

Hey, you get the idea--right?  I also have some of this growing in a pot.  Actually, I grow it for Charlie (my cockapoo).  He absolutely loves lemongrass and I always try to keep some growing for him.  When I let him out on the front porch, he heads straight for the lemongrass.  You can also use it in cooking to add a little lemon flavor.


*When I first started making the tea I just dumped the cinnamon right in the water.  As we got down to the bottom of the pitcher I noticed that there was quite a bit of sentiment on the bottom.  After looking up the problem online (what would we do without the internet?), I discovered that cinnamon is actually the bark of a tree and therefore doesn't dissolve when you put it into water--therefore tiny pieces of bark at the bottom.