How to Make Blackberry Tea

I love Iced Tea, so sometimes when we go out to eat I'll order one of the popular fruit flavored teas. So I decided to find a recipe for delicious Blackberry Tea that I could enjoy at home. This recipe from Southern Living did not disappoint at all. While blackberry season is over here in our area, you can use frozen berries for this incredible tasting tea. Make this early in the day you want to serve it.While this Blackberry Tea is easy to make, you have to allow for chilling. The blackberries are topped with sugar and crushed, then tea is poured over the berries and it must set for about an hour. The tea is poured through a wire mesh strainer so there are no seeds or pulp in the finished tea. How does it taste? To me, divine. I couldn't drink just one glass full. I'm thinking this tea will be a special treat over Labor Day, but I'll need more than 1 pitcher full. If you enjoy flavored teas, I think you'll love this one.

Blackberry Tea
Slightly adapted from Southern Living

3 cups blackberries, fresh or frozen berries can be used- I used a 16 ounce bag of frozen berries, which was 3 cups.
1 cup granulated sugar
4 cups boiling water
2 family sized tea bags
2 1/2 cold water
extra blackberries for garnish, if desired

1. In a large container combine the blackberries and the sugar. Using a wooden spoon, smash the sugar and berries together.
2. Add the 4 cups of boiling water to the 2 family sized tea bags. Let tea steep for 3 minutes. Discard the tea bags.
3. Pour the tea over the blackberry mixture and let stand 1 hour. Stir to dissolve sugar, if needed.
4. Pour the tea mixture through a wire mesh stainer into a 2 quart pitcher. (Discard the crushed solids, or save for another use, such as adding to a smoothie.)
Pour the cold water into the tea. Cover and chill until ready to serve. Garnish with extra berries or mint if desired. Enjoy!

Also, check out my Pomegranate Tea and Homemade Lemonade recipes.