2015 June 17: Today's photo is a still-life of a staple of life in the South: Southern Iced Sweet Tea! While I was making tea today, I composed this scene in order to practice my Flash Exposure Compensation (FEC) camera skills; trying this camera feature out in a variety of situations helps me to understand what to expect from it.
On the fascinating subject of tea, though: It is my experience that everyone seems to have their own avidly-held preference ...My father-in-law, for example, likes to concoct a highly-concentrated batch of tea each week and then each day dilute it for his nightly glass at supper. Others that I know will only drink bottled Milo's tea ...Both are excellent choices!
Tea brings back wonderful memories for me ...such as treasured memories of eating with my mother at proper "Little-Ol'-Lady" restaurants (the small, family-owned shops that sell scrumptious delicate sandwiches cut up into squares, a variety of teas made in large dispensers, and huge squares of brownies, cookies, and fudge); these generally offered a selection of freshly-made fruity teas such as Peach tea or Blueberry Iced tea. It was such a treat to leisurely sip and luxuriate in the coolness of the tea on a warm summer afternoon!
Later, when my children were young, our next-door-neighbors had a large shade tree -- Each evening during the summer we all set up lawn chairs in the blissful shade and sipped their (incredibly sweet, I have no idea how much sugar they used!) iced tea as we watched the children chase lightning bugs.
For my family today, I make 2 gallons of tea every few days with our Infusion Tea Maker. I hope that some time in the distant future my sons will one day slowly sip a glass of tea and savor the happy memories triggered by the wonderful taste and aroma.
Enough digression: Pictured here are my favorite teas: Lady Grey, English Afternoon, and Orange Spice.
@Robotvulture Thanks @Robot Vulture ...My recipe for 1 gallon of tea is: 4 of the "good stuff" or "flavored" regular-sized tea bags (i.e., Lady Grey, English Afternoon, Peach - the more expensive ones!), 12 of the cheapest generic regular-sized tea bags available, 2 cups of sugar, and 1 gallon of water.
After boiling the water, I steep the tea bags for 5 minutes; then remove them, add sugar, and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
In case you are interested: I use the Takeya Flash Chill Tea Maker (available at amazon, kohl's, etc.) It is a pitcher with a filter down the middle to hold tea bags or grounds; designed to make 2 quarts of tea (hot or cold) using 8-10 tea bags (or the loose-leaf equivalent) and 1 cup sugar (more or less). If you only need 2 quarts of tea, you can make and store that amount in the Takeya. I love this method; the only down-side is that it doesn't boil the water.
After boiling the water, I steep the tea bags for 5 minutes; then remove them, add sugar, and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
In case you are interested: I use the Takeya Flash Chill Tea Maker (available at amazon, kohl's, etc.) It is a pitcher with a filter down the middle to hold tea bags or grounds; designed to make 2 quarts of tea (hot or cold) using 8-10 tea bags (or the loose-leaf equivalent) and 1 cup sugar (more or less). If you only need 2 quarts of tea, you can make and store that amount in the Takeya. I love this method; the only down-side is that it doesn't boil the water.