A Recipe For Sweet Tea, of course!

 I found out recently, quite by accident, that some people use a recipe to make  Sweet Tea!

Of course, why hadn't I thought to do that? 

Use a recipe? 

That makes perfect sense.

People often ask me how I make my Sweet Tea.

Well, now I will be happy to tell you since you ask so polite like and all, my precious darlin'.

I buy Great Value Decaffeinated Black Tea from Walmart with family size  tea bags, 

nothing fancy smancy.

Then I put an inch of cold water in the bottom of a little stainless steel sauce pan.

Only I don't measure it with a ruler or anything.

I just eyeball it.

No, I don't use a measuring cup either.

I'm so sorry to let you down like that.

After I get all the important stuff done,

then I put it on a burner on the stove,

and set the dial to HI.

 Then I watch it real close,

like a hawk,

eyeballing it every few minutes.

Because I always say that if you let the water come to a full boil,

well then the Sweet Tea will be bitter!

Gasp!

No one wants bitter Sweet Tea.

And I've actually forgotten about my boiling tea, because I was making Alfredo Sauce, or washing dishes, or texting my kids, or returning quotes to customers, or sitting on the sofa eating chocolate bonbons...haha...and you know what, the tea came to a full on rolling boil, but I just ignored it and  pretended that I was all in control and on top of everything culinary, and that the tea didn't boil...yes, I pretended that, absolutely, and tried to restrain my perfectionism from throwing it away and starting over...and you know what the tea was perfect!!! Nope not bitter at all.

But still I don't let my tea come to a full on rolling boil, if I can help it.

So as soon as I see those first little bitty boiling bubbles start,

I yank it off the burner!

Fast, I tell ya'.

And I let it steep in the boiling water for 39 seconds.

No I don't time it. 

I just guessed at that too, because I'm hurrying to pour the hot tea water into the pitcher to melt the sugar.

I think that's about how long it takes me to get it from the stove to the pitcher of waiting WHITE SUGAR.

I know...don't go hatin' me.

I use a cup...ssshhhh...and a half of white sugar.

I know this because I measured it with an actual measuring cup the other night.

See I've always just thrown two scoops of sugar into the pitcher.

But the other night when I was making tea, I decided to be all prim and proper and fancy.

So I measured it!
Yes, I actually measured with a measuring cup the amount of the two scoops that I typically just throw into the pitcher.
I mean I kinda throw the sugar in there, not the scoop!

Oh my!

I was aghast that it was actually a CUP AND A HALF...

so I only used one cup of sugar. :(

Then I heard it.

"MOM? Why is the tea not sweet enough?"

"Well, because you don't actually think that I can reveal to the world wide web that I use

A CUP AND A HALF  of white sugar in a gallon of tea do you?"

But yeah, I do.

Ok so I  got side tracked...

...so after the hot tea has melted the sugar,

 I fill the little sauce pan up with cold water to get more yummy black tea goodness from the tea bags that I have left in the pan.

I swish that around real good like until the tea bags don't make brown water anymore.

And I pour that left over brown water from the tea bags into the pitcher too.

Now that sounded gross.

Then I fill my pitcher up with cold water.

And my pitcher will hold one gallon of cold water.

I know because I measured it!

Only, it's a gallon minus one inch.

Yes, I measured.

I filled a gallon jug with water.

Well, I actually used a gallon of distilled water, just to measure.

And it filled the pitcher and there was an inch of distilled water left in the bottom of the jug.

No I didn't measure with  a ruler or anything.

Yep, I just eyeballed it.

So THAT my darling is how I make SWEET TEA,

with all its sugary Southern goodness.

Funny thing!

Growing up, we NEVER had Sweet Tea.

And just in case NEVER would be too strong of a word, I will digress and say, I don't remember drinking Sweet Tea when I was growing up.

Now though, I think I could probably down that gallon between 9 a.m. and noon.

But, alas, I only allow myself an occasional 4 inches in a glass.

No, I don't measure it.

I just eyeball that too!