Mango Peach Iced Tea - Tirza Buffer

# What You Need:

→ Tea Base

01 - 4 cups water

02 - 4 black tea bags

→ Fruit Purée

03 - 1 large ripe mango, peeled and diced

04 - 2 ripe peaches, pitted and diced

05 - 2 tablespoons honey or agave syrup

06 - 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

→ To Serve

07 - 2 cups cold water

08 - 1 cup ice cubes, plus more for serving

09 - 1 small bunch fresh mint leaves

10 - Mango and peach slices for garnish, optional

# Steps:

01 - Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan. Remove from heat, add tea bags, and steep for 5 minutes. Remove tea bags and allow tea to cool completely.

02 - Combine diced mango, diced peaches, honey or agave syrup, and fresh lemon juice in a blender. Blend until smooth.

03 - Pour the fruit purée through a fine mesh sieve into a pitcher to remove any remaining fibers if desired.

04 - Add the cooled tea to the pitcher containing the fruit purée. Stir well to incorporate.

05 - Add 2 cups of cold water and 1 cup of ice cubes to the pitcher. Stir thoroughly to chill and reach desired concentration.

06 - Add half of the fresh mint leaves to the pitcher and gently muddle to release their essential oils and flavor.

07 - Refrigerate the beverage for at least 15 minutes until thoroughly chilled.

08 - Pour the iced tea over additional ice cubes in individual glasses. Garnish with mango and peach slices and fresh mint leaves.

# Expert Advice:

01 -

It tastes like pure summer in a glass without any of that artificial syrup-y aftertaste.
You can make a pitcher in less time than it takes to run errands, and it actually gets better as it chills.
The mint stays subtle enough that you can taste the real fruit, not just an herb-forward mess.

02 -

If your fruit is under-ripe, the whole drink tastes hollow and won't matter how perfect everything else is—patience at the farmers market saves disappointment in the pitcher.
Oversteeping the tea even by a few minutes makes it taste dusty and wrong, so set a timer and stick to it.

03 -