Homemade Lemonade & Southern Sweet Tea

First of all, I would like to give a sarcastic thank you to Punxsutawney Phil(The Groundhog) and Mother Nature, for getting us overly excited about an early spring; but instead taking us on a whirlwind of seasons all within a couple of months.  Pardon the pun!  This weather has been ridiculous to say the least.  However I think I can safely say, that here in the South, we have finally hit the hot-humid Summer.

For anyone who lives in, or has visited the Southern States of America, you would be very familiar with the refreshing beverage of Sweet Tea also affectionately known as “The House Wine Of The South”.  And you’ll also find, the further South you go, the sweeter the tea gets…Can I get an Amen?
This was something different for my husband, who is from Australia, for those whom maybe reading this blog for the first time.  In Australia, tea is generally drank hot with milk and sugar on the side, although you can buy the cold Lipton’s kind in gas stations, and nearly every flavor except regular sweet tea and unsweet tea.  I found that strange.
However it soon became his favorite beverage, especially with the heat and humidity here.

My husband also has a fascination with the classic ALL AMERICAN LEMONADE.
Yes they have something called Lemonade in Australia, but it’s what we would call Sprite, or Sierra Mist Soda here in the USA….so you learn something new everyday.  So as you’ve already guessed, we are going to be doing a couple of Keto-fied versions of these two classic sugar ladened beverages….And I promise ya, with a couple of our tips and tricks, they’re going to be better for you and better tasting versions than the originals.

SOUTHERN SWEET TEA

There are a few easy tips to making THE BEST SWEET TEA around.

• Always use Luzianne Family Size tea bags…only the best will do
• Adding a little baking soda to the tea is one of those unusual tricks, it reduces the tannic acidity that you sometimes get in tea, and it gives it a round smooth flavor.  It also helps to give you a nice CLEAR tea, that isn’t cloudy!!
• Please Please refuse the URGE to squeeze the tea bags when you remove them.
  Firstly, the tea bags can be very fragile and burst, and secondly, squeezing the tea can also create that bitter taste.

INGREDIENTS

1      gallon purified/spring water
4      family size tea bags(we use Luzianne to keep it southern)
1/2   cup of erythritol/stevia blend sweetener
1/8 tsp of baking soda(secret weapon)
ice, lemon wedges and a sprig of mint

1. In a large saucepan over high heat, pour in half a gallon of water (the other half can be put into the refrigerator to chill), add sweetener. Bring to a very low simmer, DO NOT BOIL, stirring until sweetener has dissolved.
2. Take off of the heat, add tea bags and baking soda, and give a gentle stir, as to not burst the tea bags.
3. Put a lid on the saucepan and let it come to room temperature.
4. Once at room temp, gently remove tea bags and fight the urge to squeeze them.
5. Add the tea concentrate to the chilled water, stir and you should have a gallon of the clearest, smoothest tasting Sweet Tea ever!
6. I serve mine over ice with a lemon wedge and a sprig of mint.

LEMONADE

INGREDIENTS

1      gallon purified/spring water (chilled)
1      cup water
1      cup erythritol/stevia blend sweetener
8-9   med-lge lemons

1. In a medium saucepan over med/high heat, add 1 cup of water and sweetener.
   Stir constantly until sweetener has dissolved and the water begins to boil.
2. Squeeze lemons and reserve the juice.
3. Pour chilled water into a large pitcher, and add the squeezed lemon juice. Mix well.
4. Carefully add the water and sweetener mixture into the lemon water and stir well.
5. Serve Over Ice

AMAZON ASSOCIATES