Steal My Sunshine

Sun tea lightly sweetened has been my drink of choice this summer (hence the blog name...)
I'm trying to drink less soda & wine (a constant battle.  Not in an alcoholic way, more in a "My pants don't fit!" way.)
I also have a weird fascination with learning to do things the old fashioned way.  And with saving glass jars.  Like every glass jar.  It feels so wasteful to throw them away. I might be a hoarder.  Only time will tell.  


So I got this:
It's a pickle jar.  I could have bought a sun tea jar at the store but I don't like the idea of heating up plastic over & over and then drinking the liquid inside.  
Plus I feel so Little House on the Prairie this way.  Not that buying tea bags in bulk and giant pickle jars at Market Basket is very "frontier" but whatever.  
So if you've never heard of sun tea, like my favorite blogger, Katie       (http://oscartini.com/) then prepare to have your. mind. blown. 


Ingredients
- One giant pickle jar (or sun tea jar but I really would get glass.  not plastic)
- 6 tea bags (our jar is about 1.5 gallons)
- Water
- Sunshine


Combine as shown above, outside until the color looks tea-like (if you use cold water it will take a few hours.)


Discard the tea bags & serve over ice.  


I dissolve sugar in warm water & mix it in to taste.  Sometimes I'll leave it unsweetened and sweeten each glass with honey.  
If I'm feeling super fancy, I'll add some mint leaves and/or lemon wedges.  If you put in a sprig of mint, the presentation is awesome.  But make sure you crush some mint leaves or you won't get the full flavor.
And the best part (other than the awesome taste?)  100 tea bags are only $1.49 at Market Basket.  So that means my whole jar of tea was about $0.08 + sweetener.  
We also use herbs to flavor water.  Basil and mint are fantastic with lemon and a pitcher full of ice cold water.  
I like having these around as a healthy option for me and for guests. 
Fun side story:
One time, I was at the 99 Restaurant.  And I ordered iced tea but I asked if it was brewed first (I'm not a fan of the other kind.)   And the waitress gives me this look and says "Um....No.  This is the 99."  (BTW 99 CEO, who obviously reads my blog; you might want to revisit your training process.) 


P.S. You can also use herbal tea- iced peppermint tea is to die for, as well as iced chamomile. 
P.P.S Some people don't like the idea of leaving the sun tea out for fear of bacteria growing.  I don't have an issue with it, but if you do, just put the jar in the fridge.  It will take about twice as long, but you will get the same flavorful tea that way.