Sweet Tea

My Dad is a sweet tea guru and he taught me his method when I was very young.  When I was older, only I knew the secrets of my Dad's sweet tea and was often in charge of making it for my family.  I found out early on in my dating relationship with Josh that he was not a fan of sweet tea; he liked it plain. After getting over the shock of this I just determined that we'd work together to find a tea that works for us.  So, I've spent the last several years finding a balance.  I'd make un-sweet tea and gag.  I'd make my family's very sweet tea and he'd gag.  And somehow, we've found a balance and we can now enjoy tea together without me having to make two pitchers!  So today, I'm bringing you the secret of my sweet tea.  (Which I think is better than any sweet tea I've ever purchased and is so much cheaper to make at home!)

Ingredients
1 gallon jug
6 tea bags (I love Luzianne brand)
1 cup sugar

Fill a pot of water and throw in your 6 tea bags.  Turn on your burner and let that tea boil.  I usually let it brew about 15 minutes.  You want this tea to be strong, but you don't want the bags to break.

Turn the heat off and drain the tea from your bags.  I do this by hand if I'm feeling especially fearless but that's really stupid and I always regret it.  The best way to do it is to take two spoons and softly press the tea bag between the spoons before throwing it out.  Be careful not to break the bag!  This isn't necessary, but it's going to make your tea stronger and strong tea is good when you're making it sweet!

Now for the most important thing -- and this is the thing my Dad taught me so he gets all the credit (thanks, Dad!) -- pour your 1 cup of sugar into the hot tea while it's still in the pot!!!  Your sugar will melt into the tea and it will be so much better.  I promise.  Give the sugar a stir for about a minute or two until you feel it's dissolved.

Grab your empty gallon (we have gallons of water for those times we need formula and for this I just used one of those) jug or pitcher and pour your tea through a funnel on into the jug (funnel not needed if you're using a pitcher!).  At the end of the pouring you'll be pouring in caramelized tea sugar.  Pour in as much as you can.

Fill the pot back up with warm water and send it through the funnel.  You're basically adding your water and rinsing the last of the sugar out of the pot at the same time.  Now continue to fill the pot (now with cold water) and dump it into the jug until it's almost full.

Give that jug a good shake (or give your pitcher a stir) and then top it off with water.  Put it in the fridge and feel free to enjoy time and time again!

Weight Watchers info: 2 cups = 3 pts plus (More volume and less pts than a can of soda! Win!)

I hope you enjoy this recipe and it helps you!  I feel like it took me years to perfect sweet tea and I couldn't have ever done it without my Dad's tips and guidance!