Iced Tea Parfaits Food

PERFECT ICED TEA

Steps:

• Hot-Brewed:
• Bring 8 cups water to a simmer; remove from the heat and add 3 tablespoons loose tea or 6 tea bags. Let steep about 4 minutes, until it's the strength you like. Strain loose tea with a fine-mesh sieve or remove the tea bags. Let cool, then transfer to a pitcher, cover and refrigerate.
• Cold-Brewed:
• Combine 8 cups cold water and 6 tablespoons loose tea or 10 tea bags in a pitcher. Cover and refrigerate 15 to 36 hours, until it's the strength you like. Strain loose tea with a fine-mesh sieve or remove the tea bags.
• Sweet Teas:
• Combine 3/4 cup each sugar and water in a saucepan and add 1 infuser, if desired. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves, then remove from the heat and let cool. Strain the infused syrup through a fine-mesh sieve (you'll get about 1 cup).
• Orange Add 6 strips zest
• Blackberries 1 cup
• Cinnamon 2 sticks
• Lavender 3 tablespoons dried
• Vanilla 1 halved bean
• Mint 3 sprigs
• Ginger 1 cup sliced
• Lemon 8 strips zest
• Nectarine 1 cup chopped
• Cucumber 2 cups chopped

EASY ICED TEA

Steps:

• Put the tea bags, sugar, honey and 1.5 litres water in a large jug. Leave to infuse for 10 mins, then remove and discard the tea bags. Chill until ready to serve.
• Stir in the lemon juice, lemon slices, orange slices and mint leaves. Fill the jug with plenty of ice and stir again.
• Fill tall glasses with ice and pour over the iced tea, then serve with extra honey to taste.

LEMON MERINGUE PARFAIT

Steps:

• Line a 20cm round tin, preferably loose-based, with cling film, using more than one piece if necessary to cover the bottom and up the sides, and pop in the freezer.
• Roughly break up the meringues with your fingers into a bowl, aiming for nothing bigger than a golf ball.
• Put the cream and sugar in a large bowl and whisk until starting to stiffen. Stop when it looks floppy, like Greek yogurt.
• Grate over the lemon zest and sprinkle over the gin and meringue rubble. Use a large spoon or spatula to fold the cream up, over and round, until just combined.
• Stir the lemon curd so it's gloopy rather than firm; if it remains too thick, dilute with a tsp of gin. Dollop over the surface of the cream. Take your spoon and fold it in, turning the bowl as you do so - no more than a dozen folds, so the curd forms streaks. Spoon gently into the tin and freeze for at least four hours. Once firm, cover with cling film.
• About 10-20 mins before serving, remove the parfait from the freezer, invert onto a plate, peel away the cling film, and return right-side-up, at room temperature. Serve in wedges with lemon curd drizzled over and the fruit on the side.

PERFECT ICED TEA

Steps:

• In a 4-cup measuring cup, heat 4 cups water in microwave to boiling.
• Place tea bags in water and let steep for 5- 10 minutes.
• Pour sugar into 2 quart pitcher and pour hot tea over it.
• Squeeze tea bags to get out any remaining tea; add tea to pitcher and discard bags (if they are too hot to squeeze by hand, pull them up the side of the measuring cup with the strings and press with a spoon).
• Stir hot tea until sugar is dissolved.
• Add 4 cups cold water and lemon juice; stir well.
• Chill until very cold and serve over ice with lemon.