Vanilla Sweet Tea

So this is my first blog post. In honor of summer and the season my first recipe is for one of my favorite summertime drinks.......SWEET TEA! Now, since I'm home for the summer this isn't really a college dish, but any college student with access to a stove/hot plate and some kind of pitcher can make. This recipe is super simple and so easy to customize to your needs. So, without and further ado....Vanilla Sweet Tea

VANILLA SWEET TEA - Makes 2 Quarts

Ingredients:

• 5 bags of black tea
• 7 1/3 c Water
• 2/3 c sugar
• 2 tsp. Vanilla extract.

Other things you'll need:

• A clear or semi-clear jar or pitcher to make your tea in
• Small sauce pan for boiling water
• Tea Pot (optional)

Directions:

Tea: (3 parts of your sweet tea)

1. Take your 5 tea bags and put them into your pitcher along with 6 cups water.
2. Let sit in the sun for 1-1 1/2 hours or until your tea looks dark enough.
3. When the tea is ready bring inside and put into your fridge to cool.

Syrup: (1 part of your sweet tea)

1. In saucepan mix 1 1/3 cups water with 2/3 cups sugar and 2 tsp vanilla extract.
2. Bring mix to a rapid boil and let boil for 5 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and add to your tea.
4. Cool and enjoy!

If you need to make more or less the basic ratio is 3 parts Tea to 1 part simple syrup. The syrup is 2 parts water to 1 part sugar with vanilla added to taste (I use 1 tsp for each cup of syrup i will end up with). This is so easy and delicious and so easy to switch up. If you're making it in the winter you can boil your tea. Try it with different types of tea such as ginger, peach, strawberry, green, or any other type of tea you enjoy. Or add different extracts, or no extract. The possibilities are endless so mix it up and let me know what you think!