Ingredients:
• 8 tea bags of any good-quality black tea
• 1 medium lemon or orange
• 8 cups simmering water
• Ice
• Simple Syrup (optional) (Recipe follows)
Directions:
Hot-Brewed:
• Place the tea bags in a large heatproof glass pitcher.
• Use a vegetable peeler to strip the peel from the lemon or orange, avoiding as much of the white pith as possible.
• Add the peel to the pitcher.
• Pour the simmering water into the pitcher and let it steep for at least 5 minutes.
• Remove the tea bags and discard.
• Refrigerate the tea until cool.
• To serve, fill iced tea glasses with ice and pour the tea over the ice.
• Sweeten with simple syrup, if desired.
Cold-Brewed:
• Combine 8 cups cold water and 6 tablespoons loose tea or 10 tea bags in a pitcher.
• Cover and refrigerate 15 to 36 hours, until it’s the strength you like.
• Strain loose tea with a fine-mesh sieve or remove the tea bags.
Simple Syrup
Ingredients:
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup water
Directions:
• Place sugar and water in a small saucepan and stir to combine.
• Bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat.
• Reduce heat and simmer until sugar is completely dissolved and syrup is slightly thickened, about 3 minutes.
• Remove from heat and let cool.
• Transfer syrup to a container with a tight fitting lid, cover, and refrigerate until ready to use.
