Saturday, July 14, 2012

Summer in a glass: Peach & Thai Basil Iced Tea

Yum!

Yesterday I picked up the CSA (community supported agriculture) share that my friend gets each month - she is on vacation and offered the share to me!  Of course I jumped at the opportunity!

Wowser!  I got 10 peaches, 5 radishes, 5 potatoes, 5 tomatillos, 6 eggs, a squash, handfuls of ground cherries, thai basil and italian basil and a basil plant!  

I knew that I needed to get started quickly while all this was still fresh.   I quickly started looking recipes to use up the basil before the leaves wilted too much.  

My first thoughts:
  • pesto
  • frozen basil (either the pesto, or leaves frozen in olive oil)
  • a thai basil drink - when my sister and I were on a girl's weekend in Raleigh one year we had the most amazing Thai Basil and Blueberry gin drink.  AMAAAZiNG!  Spicy and sweet all together.   I wanted to make something non-alcoholic that was similar..
Thai Basil and Peach Iced Tea!  PERFECT!!  But all the recipes  I found have sugar and boil the peaches/basil with the sugar to make simple syrup.  I need a no-sugar-added recipe.  :)   So here is what I came up with!

First, brew 2 Qts of Orange Pekoe tea.  I used Salada tea bags.  I usually like my tea pretty weak but the two flavors here are strong so I brewed 5 tea bags in 4 cups of water till it was strong.

Next, peel and roughly chop up 3 peaches into a large bowl.  This works best if your bowl has a flat bottom.  Wash and tear a good sized handful of thai basil leaves (not stems or blossoms)
I wish I had a muddler - but I love the MixNChop from Pampered Chef. 
Smoosh up those peaches and basil to release the juice and flavors.

Next, add ice to a pitcher and pour in the smooshed peaches.

Pour in your tea (make sure to take out the teabags!)

It seemed a little strong for me, so fill it up to the top with water to make the tea match your taste!

Garnish with the blossom of the thai basil - it is this beautiful purple flower!   Sit on the deck on a beautiful sunny day and enjoy sipping on this delicious, slightly sweet and fruity and spicy tea.   

Enjoy!
 

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