Imagine drinking a tall glass of naturally sweetened iced tea. Now imagine all of those antioxidants and healthy vitamins flowing through your body. Isn’t it great to know you are taking care of yourself even when you drink your favorite summertime beverage?
Here are three easy ways to naturally sweeten a tall glass of tea:
#1 Honey. Each and every year new studies prove that honey is good for us. So why don’t we use it more?
Here is an easy technique to creating a Honey Simple Syrup which tastes great in iced tea as well as many other cold beverages.
You will need:
1 Cup Water
1 Cup Honey
Boil the two until all the honey dissolves . Cool and pour into an easy to squeeze bottle and place in your fridge. This Honey Simple Syrup will last for up to 2 weeks and will taste great added into your cold tea.
Want to get creative? Why not add lavender, strawberries or cinnamon to the cold syrup. The flavor will infuse into your honey syrup and taste great!
#2 Stevia Extract. Stevia is an herb several times sweeter than sugar. Stevia powders are readily available in grocery stores but vary greatly in taste. The best stevia product I have found is made by NuStevia and can be ordered directly from their website or may be found in your health food store. (they may even be willing to order it for you!)
Nu Stevia makes a stevia extract that is perfect for Iced Tea. Place just a few drops of the liquid stevia into your tea pitcher and your beverage will be ready to serve. Stevia extracts also come in flavors such as vanilla which would taste great with any icy beverage.
#3 Agave Nectar
Agave liquid is the nectar from the agave fruit. This nectar is a great substitute sweetener for Vegans, Diabetics and anyone looking to avoid using sugar or honey.
Agave melts easily into a glass of iced tea so there is no need to create a syrup or order a special extract. Agave can range in quality so shop around to find one that is not only good tasting but also good for you.
Remember, a great glass of iced tea is only as good as the tea you are using. Be sure to use a high quality loose-leaf tea such as Ceylon, Keemun or Yunnan. These teas are often available at stores like Whole Foods or your local tea shop.
A great glass of tea is within your reach! Now go out and steep.
Here are some more articles you may enjoy:
A Quick and Easy Way To Make Iced Tea
Do You Know Where Your Tea Comes From?
Tea Party Girl Asks? What do you sweeten YOUR iced tea with?