Summertime citrus Luzianne Iced Tea with orange wheels as garnish on a wooden table
22 Votes
Rate This Recipe
×

Summertime Citrus Iced Tea

Prep Time:

10 minutes

Brew Time:

20 minutes

Yield:

2 quarts

Strong Southern iced tea blended with lemon and orange juices, with extra zing from orange and lemon zest. Makes a delightful brunch drink!

Ingredients

  • 1 large navel orange
  • 1 large lemon
  • 5 ½ cups cold water, divided
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 Luzianne® Family Size Iced Tea bags*
  • 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice, chilled
  • Lemon wheels and oranges wedges for garnish, optional

Directions

  1. Using a vegetable peeler remove the zest from the orange and the lemon. Set aside. Reserve the fruit for another use.
  2. Prepare citrus syrup: Add the orange zest and lemon zests, 1 cup water and sugar to a small saucepot. Stir. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook until sugar is dissolved, about 90 seconds. Set aside to steep for 20 minutes. Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the solids from the liquid, pressing on the solids with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard solids. Place syrup in refrigerator to cool.
  3. While the syrup is cooling make a strong tea. In a pitcher, steep 2 tea bags in 2 cups boiling water for 10 minutes.* Remove and discard tea bags. Add the remaining 2 ½ cups water.
  4. Add the lemon and orange juices and the citrus syrup to taste, ½ to 1 cup; stir. Chill and serve over ice with orange and lemon wheels if desired.

To make a refreshing cocktail punch, replace 2 cups of the cold water with 2 cups of chilled gin. *Alternatively, steep 2 bags of Luzianne® Cold Brew Iced Tea in 2 cups cold water for 10 minutes.