This is where I apologise to our friends in the north for my recent ravings about being so hot, but maybe you’ll be thanking me in 6 months when you’re dying of thirst – let’s hope so (well, not that you’re dying, but that you’ll be thankful) For the rest of us roasting away lately, here’s an easy peasy recipe for super chilled iced tea.[rss-cut]

You’ll need:

4 tea bags of mixed variety (I use 1 x rooibos, 1 x black tea, 2 x green tea & peppermint)
Water
1 teaspoon cinnamon (or 1 x cinnamon stick)
1 teaspoon crushed ginger
Handful of mint
Half a lime, cut into wedges
1 tray of ice
* Secret sweetening ingredient – 1 clump star anise (is clump the right term? someone help me out here!)

Make it:

Put your tea bags, cinnamon, star anise and ginger in a jug.
Boil a couple of cups of water and pour over ingredients in jug.
Let stand for 10 minutes for tea bags to steep.
Fill jug completely with cold water and chill in fridge for an hour.

To serve:

Remove star anise and tea bags
Throw in as many ice cubes as you like + lime wedges and mint leaves into jug.
Get a tall glass and throw in a few more ice cubes.
Pour in thirst quenching iced tea.
Kick back and be cool.

Cool Tips:

For extra icey-ness, use the crushed variety.
Strain tea mix to remove ginger bits if you wish.
Don’t be afraid to munch down the mint leaves – they’re so good for your digestives.
You can leave the tea bags in and keep refilling jug – they do get a little tangy but when you want the iced tea to last forever, it’s a small price to pay.
Put a paper umbrella in to pretend you’re on holidays.

About Ingrid Schroder

A Sydney-side freelance graphic designer, photographer & yoga teacher - I find myself turning to nature for guaranteed revival from the crazy pace of city life - be it digging in my garden, capturing natural beauty through a lens, floating in the ocean, practicing yoga or out exploring this incredible planet we all call home. Follow me on twitter @Cohabitaire