I’m sure no matter where you live this summer, you’re feeling the heat. We’ve already experienced (what I swear) is a record of 100 degree days and technically summer only began two days ago!
I’m a huge water drinker but sometimes on those really hot days I need something else to quench the thirst and cool down. Summer beverages are one of my favorite ways to get creative in the kitchen!
Last summer we experimented with homemade ginger beer and lots of flavored water kefir. We are still huge fan of water kefir but I recently had to start a new batch of grains. Ours were about a year old and I think they weren’t able to adapt to another swing in temperature.
Until the new water kefir grains are fully activated, I’m enjoying keeping a rotation of sun brewed tea on hand!
Our deck gets a ton of morning sun and it’s been so wonderful to harness that power to brew tea instead of turning on the stove to heat up water.
I have also branched out into brewing sun coffee. My husband can drink hot coffee all summer long but I prefer an iced one in the afternoon – even if it’s half caff these days.
In the past I’ve tried to make cold brew coffee in the refrigerator but it takes at least 24 hours and I never seemed to get the ratio or grind right. The sun brewed system has been working out well for us. The coffee can be strained and poured over ice right away or put in the fridge to enjoy later.
Sun Brewed Tea
What You Will Need:
- a half gallon glass container (I use a mason jar)
- 4 to 5 tea bags
- a half gallon of water
How to Make Sun Brewed Tea:
Tie the tea bags together. Place them inside the top of the container while holding onto the tags over the edge so they don’t fall in.
Pour the water into the container and over the tea bags until the container is full.
Make sure the tea bags are submerged in the water.
Screw on the lid.
Place in the sun for at least four hours to brew.
Once the tea has reached it’s desired color or strength, remove the tea bags and discard.
The tea can be enjoyed over ice right away or moved to the fridge to cool down.
We drink our sun tea within 5-7 days if it lasts that long.
Variations:
If you enjoy a strong tea use more tea bags or brew the tea for longer.
These ratios can easily be adjusted and scaled for a smaller quart size batch or a larger gallon size.
I usually make black iced tea with Lipton tea bags but you can brew any tea this way. Some other favorites include raspberry iced tea, hibiscus, tangerine, and a spicy mango tea mixed with black tea so it isn’t too overpowering. The possibilities are endless!
Sun Brewed Coffee
What You Will Need:
- a quart sized mason jar
- 1/4 cup ground coffee
- a quart of water
- strainer
- coffee filters
How to Make Sun Brewed Coffee:
Scoop your ground coffee and pour in the bottom of the quart sized jar.
Add water until the container if full.
Screw on the lid and shake to combine.
Place the jar in the sun and let brew for two hours. If I happen to walk by, I give the container another shake to stir the grounds up.
When the sun coffee is done brewing pour it through a coffee filter sitting within a strainer to filter out the grains.
Enjoy over ice right away or put in the fridge to cool down.
We drink our sun coffee within 3-5 days of brewing.
Tips and Variations:
We always add a little cardamom to our coffee grounds before brewing to help cut the acidity.
I haven’t found a way to quickly or consistently push the coffee through the paper filter so I wind up carefully squeezing the filter to get the coffee strained in little batches. It’s worth it to me not to deal with any grounds in the final product. If you’re less picky than I am, the strainer alone might be enough. Any grounds that slip through will just settle at the bottom.
This recipe can easily be doubled to make a half gallon at a time if you have a lot of coffee drinkers in your home. Place the half gallon glass container in the sun for four hours.
What are some of your favorite refreshing summer beverages?
