Description
This Sweet Peach Iced Tea is a refreshing and naturally sweetened beverage perfect for warm days. Combining brewed tea with a luscious homemade peach syrup made from fresh or frozen peaches, honey, and sugar, it offers a delightful balance of fruity sweetness and tea flavor. Served chilled with ice and peach slices, it makes a perfect thirst-quencher for summer gatherings or relaxing afternoons.
Ingredients
Tea Base
- 5 cups water (divided into 4 cups and 1 cup)
- 1 family-size tea bag (or 3 regular-size tea bags)
Peach Syrup
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¾ cup honey
- 2 cups frozen peaches, thawed and pureed (or 2 cups fresh peaches, peeled and sliced)
To Serve
- 2 cups frozen peaches
- Ice cubes as needed
Instructions
- Boil Water: Bring 4 cups of water to a rolling boil in a kettle or saucepan, ensuring the water is hot enough to steep the tea properly.
- Steep Tea: Remove the boiling water from the heat source, add the family-size tea bag (or three regular bags), and let it steep for 5 minutes to extract rich flavor.
- Prepare Tea Base: Pour the steeped tea into a 2-quart pitcher and set aside to cool slightly while preparing the syrup.
- Make Peach Syrup: In a medium saucepan, combine ¾ cup sugar, ¾ cup honey, and 1 cup of water. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring continuously until the sugar dissolves completely.
- Add Peach Puree: Stir in the pureed peaches and return the mixture to a gentle boil over low heat. Then, remove from heat and allow the syrup to cool.
- Strain Syrup: Pour the cooled peach syrup through a fine mesh sieve into a small bowl, pressing the peach pulp to extract maximum juice. Discard the leftover pulp.
- Combine Syrup and Tea: Add the strained syrup gradually to the tea in the pitcher, tasting as you go until you reach the desired sweetness level.
- Assemble Drinks: In each of 4 glasses, divide the 2 cups of frozen peaches, add ice cubes, and pour the sweetened peach tea over the top.
- Serve and Store: Serve immediately for a refreshing beverage. Refrigerate any unused peach syrup in an airtight container for up to one week.
Notes
- You can use fresh peaches when in season or frozen peaches thawed and pureed for convenience.
- Adjust the sweetness by varying the amount of syrup added to the tea.
- For a stronger tea flavor, steep the tea longer or use an additional tea bag.
- This peach syrup can also be used as a sweetener for cocktails or desserts.
- Store leftover syrup in the refrigerator for up to one week in a sealed container.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Beverages
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
