rhubarb ice tea

there is so much rhubarb growing in my garden right now, though i didn’t actually plant it, i figure someone should be par-taking in this glorious, crazy, edible stuff.  i have been slowly harvesting it and trying to come up with recipes other than the classic rhubarb strawberry pie. i mean, who doesn’t like pie? but with so much of it growing, there are only so many pies one can make.

my neighbors across the river had a bbq this past weekend. i made potato skins with a chipotle sour cream and rhubarb ice tea! it was super easy to make and i thought what a great way to celebrate in the bountiful beauty of our neighborhood then to share the rhubarb from the garden.  it pretty much tastes like sweet tea. living in the south for 3 years, i never caught onto sweet tea, but this was actually really tasty and everyone loved it! i have a feeling i will be making this all summer!

don’t just stop at rhubarb, any infused simple syrup is a great addition to an ordinary glass of tea. though, i still love mine with lots of lemon!

ps. if you didn’t already know, the leaves of rhubarb are poisonous, so discard them right away!

what you need:

10 bags of black tea

10 cups of cold water

2-4 stalks of rhubarb, chopped, depending on how tart you might like it

1 cup of sugar

1 cup of water

in a pitcher combine the cold water and tea bags. place in the fridge for a few hours to brew. no need to heat up the water. the cold brews it kind of like sun tea!

boil the sugar, one cup of water, and rhubarb together. once at a boil, turn down to a simmer. simmer until it becomes like a syrup. let it cool.

pour the syrup into the pitcher of tea. serve over ice with your choice of garnish!