Iced Tea Limeade

It's so hot! It's like a sauna out there -- nothing compared to the beautiful Pacific coast and Rocky Mountain air that I took in for two weeks when we were vacationing in Vancouver. Although it's good to be home, I already miss the cool mornings, crisp evenings, cedar-scented air and the comfort of knowing that at any point in the city, all I need to do is look up and I'll see the mountains, so close and beckoning.

Toronto's smoggy summer air welcomed us home. But hey, I'm not complaining too much. I still have more than half of my summer holidays left and lots of catching up to do. I was terrible at documenting my food adventures in Vancouver, although we did have quite a few! So I thought I'd try to re-make some of my favourite things that I sampled while on vacation and re-live the experience all over again.

Let's start with this drink. I had to start with something low-key and easy, seeing as I'm easing back into this Toronto weather. This drink is tart and refreshing and just the thing to keep you hydrated on a day like today. Let me tell you about what inspired this drink. On one of your last city walk in Vancouver, we stumbled upon this cute little coffee shop called Arbutus Coffee that's housed in a beautiful building in a mostly residential area. We literally stumbled on it -- it's in a place you wouldn't expect, much like Le Marché St. Georges which we loved, Union Market (saved for another post!) and the Wilder Snail where we bought juices and power bars, coffees and hot chocolate and sat on a perfect spot across the street in a park on our last day in Vancouver.

But back to the iced tea. When we came across Arbutus, I was a little caffeinated already, but couldn't resist trying the coffee, which was very strong and smooth. My partner took it easy, and ordered a summer special -- iced tea lemonade. I was offered a sip and was very impressed. It wasn't watery and bland like a lot of homemade iced teas can be. It was strong, very lemony and sweet: a perfect refresher on a summer afternoon. Thinking about Vancouver cafes today, I made a batch of my own iced tea, using limes instead of lemons, and brewing a strong white tea berry blend as the base. I sweetened it with some lime-infused simple syrup and drank it up with lots of ice. And although I wish I were drinking this refreshing tea from a straw, walking along a quiet sidewalk in Vancouver, relaxing at home with homemade iced drinks is just fine by me.

Iced Tea Limeade
makes about 5 cups

For the Lime-Infused Simple Syrup
1/2 cup of natural cane sugar
1/2 cup of water
zest of one lime

1. Combine the sugar and water in a small pot. Heat on low, stirring gently, until the sugar dissolves.
2. Turn off the heat. Add the lime zest and let it rest for about 15 minutes.
3. Strain out the zest and store in a jar.

For the Tea
4 tea bags of your choice (something fruity yet caffeinated would be my recommendation)
4 cups of boiling water
1 cup of cold water
juice of 4 limes
4-6 tablespoons of lime-infused simply syrup (taste as you go and add as much as you like)

1. In a pot, bring 4 cups of water to a rolling boil. Add in the tea bags, turn off the heat and let the tea steep. Allow it to cool.

2. Transfer your strong tea into a large jar or jug. Add the cold water, lime juice and syrup. Stir well.

3. Serve over ice and stay cool!

Summer Don't Go!

It has just occurred to me that autumn is just around the corner. I know, I know! But still. Apples, turnips, pumpkins, pencils, books... school ... that's just a stone's throw away and while I do look forward to crisp sweater-weather, warm comforting stews and a brand new school year, I'm not ready to let go of summer just yet. So what should we do? Simple! Fill up our days with all the summer-y fun things and enjoy every last moment. Like what, you ask? Having brunch with friends in the warmth of a weekday summer morning, watching matinee movies, staying up late on Sundays, walking everywhere, enjoying summer berries and fresh local veggies, going camping, taking day trips and ... making and enjoying iced tea.

I've always loved iced tea. As a non-alcoholic-drinker, iced tea has always been my old friend and standby. I first tried making it earlier this year for a little tea party I was having with my students. Since then, I've tweaked it a little to suit more grown up tastes -- not that a recipe for iced tea can be tweaked too much. It's very very simple and gives you refreshing, satisfying results. And what about those cherries in the picture above? Ah .. those are sour cherries. When kickpleat wrote about them on ReadyMade, and I saw them sitting innocently in a basket at the fruit market, I just had to try them. I pitted a little basket and froze them right away as we were going on vacation. When I came back, they welcomed me by giving me a little sweet-sour super cold treat to munch on. BUT .. they are even BETTER when you use them as little fruity ice cubes in this iced tea. I used a combination of an inexpensive fruit tea that came in bags and rooibos tea that I bought loose at a health food store. Feel free to just use teabags or loose tea (I would say that 1 teaspoon of loose tea would equal the amount in a teabag).


Please go make some iced tea. If you do it and I do it then maybe, just maybe, summer will hang around a little bit longer ...

Fruity Rooibos Iced Tea

6 cups of water
3-4 bags of fruity herbal tea
1 tablespoons of rooibos tea
3 tablespoons of sugar (or more or less to your taste)
the juice of half a lemon
frozen fruit to serve (optional)

1. Bring the six cups of water to a rolling boil. Turn off the heat and dump in the tea. Cover and let it steep for about 10 minutes.

2. Strain the tea into a different pot using a strainer lined with cheesecloth or empty teabags. You can skip this step if you're not using a loose tea like rooibos that's got a lot of little bits in it. I'm sure green tea and black tea leaves will strain fine with just the strainer.

3. Let the tea cool for about 5 minutes. Add sugar and lemon juice and give it a big stir. Adjust the sugar/lemon amounts to your taste.

4. Allow the tea to cool completely before to pouring into a jug or in my case, and empty juice container, and storing the fridge. To complete the experience, pour yourself a glass, drop in a few pieces of frozen fruit and toast to summer not being over just yet.