Spiced & iced - tea recipes

Sunset, August, 1994 by Christine Weber Hale

With fruit and bubbles, tea hits its stride as the smoother cooler

ICED TEA, DRESSED UP, IS THE SOFT drink of the '90s. Skyrocketing sales of prepared teas and tea-juice blends are pushing carbonated beverages aside on market shelves.

The concept of these tea drinks is simple enough to take home. Iced tea fans can easily create an exotic array of tea-juice blends. The starting point is extra-strong tea concentrate that keeps in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks. You can use the concentrate alone, diluted with water, or flavor it further with spices and other seasonings. To make a drink, dilute the concentrate by the pitcher or the glass.

You can use any tea as the concentrate base, but to emphasize a juice companion, pick a tea that has the same or a complementary flavor. For example, to intensify the overall fruit flavor of Apricot Tea Sparkler, start with a concentrate made with apricot-flavor tea.

A tremendous array of varietal or flavored teas is available, even in supermarkets and especially in tea and coffee stores. Pairing them compatibly with the ever-increasing kinds and blends of fruit juices--refrigerated, canned, or made from concentrates--holds promise for many refreshing hours. Adding sparkling water gives the flavored teas a tingling effervescence.

Try our recipes, then let them guide you to more adventures. Keep in mind that the ratio we found strong enough to retain plenty of flavor when poured into an ice-filled glass is 1 part tea concentrate to 2 parts water or juice.

Not only do these teas look cool and refreshing, but some of them will make layered drinks. When tea is poured onto some kinds of sweet fruit juice, the tea floats, making ribbons of color until you stir and sip.

Apricot Tea Sparkler

For the most emphatic fruit taste, make the concentrate with apricot-flavor tea.

1 1/3 cups tea concentrate

1 1/3 cups chilled canned apricot nectar

1 1/3 cups chilled sparkling water

Ice cubes

Combine concentrate, nectar, and sparkling water. Pour into tall ice-filled glasses. Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 49 cal. (1.8 percent from fat); 0.3 g protein; 0.1 g fat (0 g sat.); 13 g carbo.; 9.6 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.

Honey Vanilla Peach Tea Sparkler

1 1/3 cups tea concentrate

1 piece vanilla bean, about 3 inches long

2 tablespoons honey

1 1/3 cups chilled canned peach nectar or juice

1 1/3 cups chilled sparkling water

Ice cubes

In a 1- to 1 1/2-quart pan, combine concentrate, vanilla, and honey; heat to boiling. Cover and chill until cold, 1 hour or up to 2 days. Remove vanilla bean and reserve for other uses (let dry and store airtight with sugar). Combine concentrate with nectar and sparkling water. Pour into tall ice-filled glasses. Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 81 cal. (0 percent from fat); 0.3 g protein; 0 g fat; 21 g carbo.; 13 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.

Lemon Ginger Tea Sparkler

1 1/3 cups tea concentrate

1 lemon, thinly sliced

1/4 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger

2 2/3 cups chilled ginger ale

Ice cubes

In a 1- to 1 1/2-quart pan, combine tea concentrate, 1/2 the lemon slices, and ginger; bring to boiling. Cover and chill until cold, at least 1 hour or up to 2 days. Pour through a fine strainer into a pitcher and add ginger ale; discard used lemon slices and ginger. Pour tea into tall ice-filled glasses. Drop remaining lemon slices into tea, or use to garnish glasses. Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 118 cal. (0.8 percent from fat); 0.4 g protein; 0.1 g fat (0 g sat.); 32 g carbo.; 29 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.

Cranberry Cherry Tea Sparkler

1 1/3 cups tea concentrate

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1 1/3 cups chilled canned cherry cider or juice

1 1/3 cups chilled sparkling water

Ice cubes

In a 1- to 1 1/2-quart pan, combine tea concentrate and cranberries; bring to boiling. Cover and chill until cold, at least 1 hour or 2 days. Pour mixture through a fine strainer into a large pitcher; discard cranberries. To pitcher, add cider and sparkling water; mix. Pour into 4 tall ice-filled glasses. Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 69 cal. (1.3 percent from fat); 0.1 g protein; 0.1 g fat (0 g sat.); 18 g carbo.; 10 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.

Cinnamon Citrus Tea Sparkler

One liquid floats on another in this fascinating beverage. Ideal swizzle sticks for mixing it are very long cinnamon sticks--the kind that are used more for decoration than seasoning.

1 1/3 cups tea concentrate

Thinly pared peel (colored part only) of 1 small orange

1 cinnamon stick, about 2 inches long

2 2/3 cups chilled sparkling water

Ice cubes

1/4 to 1/2 cup thawed frozen orange juice concentrate or tangerine juice concentrate

In a 1- to 1 1/2-quart pan, combine tea concentrate, orange peel, and cinnamon stick; bring to boiling. Cover and chill until cold, at least 1 hour or up to 2 days. Discard orange peel and cinnamon stick. Combine concentrate with sparkling water.

Fill 4 tall glasses (at least 12-oz. size) with ice cubes. To make liquid layers, pour thawed orange juice concentrate equally into each glass, then gently pour tea mixture into glasses. Stir before sipping. Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 32 cal. (0 percent from fat); 0.4 g protein; 0 g fat; 8 g carbo.; 7.7 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.