Honey-sweetened iced tea with lemon

Homemade honey-sweetened iced tea is a refreshing drink. Make and sweeten your own iced tea with honey to avoid artificial sweeteners and shop-bought iced teas filled with white sugar. Making your own iced tea is simpler than you think and a perfect summer cooler. This honey-sweetened iced tea recipe with lemon is for two portions but is simple to scale to serve a crowd.

Benefits of using honey in iced tea

Making sweet tea, especially sweet iced tea, honey is the best way to sweeten your drink naturally. Honey has plenty of health benefits, it is rich in antioxidants and better for our blood sugar than regular sugar. Do not go overboard though, for honey is still pure sugar, but consumed in small quantities it is an amazing sweetener to substitute artificial sweeteners, simple syrup, or plain white sugar with! 

In this iced lemon tea recipe, like so many of my other tea recipes, I recommend honey as the sweetener for the iced teas. The sweetness of the honey balances beautifully the flavors of black tea and the lemon gives the final drink a slight acidity.

Tips for making

• Mix honey into hot tea to melt it evenly before adding cold water and ice!
• If you want to make stronger iced tea, increase the amount of tea leaves instead of extending the steeping time to avoid the bitter flavors.

Ingredients you need for iced tea

• Loose-leaf black tea: choose unflavoured Assam or Darjeeling for example. You can use black tea bags.
• Honey
• Lemon: for this recipe, you’ll need both lemon juice and slices of lemon.
• Water: hot water to make the tea and cold water to add after steeping.
• Ice cubes

You can find the exact measurements on the recipe card.

Tools you may need

• Teacup or a small jug, I used a metallic measuring cup
• Tea infuser, tea strainer, or a regular strainer
• Pitcher or a glass jar
• Cutting board and fruit knife
• Electric kettle

How to make honey-sweetened iced tea

Step one: Infuse the tea

Pour boiled water on the tea leaves and let them steep for about 3-5 minutes. If you leave them steep too long your tea can have bitter flavors. If you want to make stronger tea increase the amount of tea leaves, not the steeping time to avoid the bitterness. 

Step two: Cut and juice the lemon

Cut the lemon slices for the garnish and juice about half a lemon to use in the iced tea.

Step three: Sweeten with honey and cool the iced tea

When the tea is ready, discard the tea leaves. Add the honey to the hot tea and mix it well. Pour the sweetened tea, cool water, and lemon juice into a big pitcher and mix.

Serving the iced lemon tea

Build the iced tea in the glasses starting with ice cubes and then the lemon slice or two. Pour your homemade iced tea over the ice and add straws if you like.

Storage and making ahead

Homemade honey-sweetened iced tea stays good in the fridge for about one week when stored airtightly. Just add the ice and lemon slices when you are about to serve it. You can make the iced tea beforehand ready for the fridge for your summer party. You can then add and mix the lemon juice into your iced tea just before serving for a fresher result.

How to tweak this recipe

• Instead of unflavoured black tea leaves use a tea blend or your favorite flavoured tea.
• Double or triple the recipe and serve in a pitcher for a summer party.
• Use different sizes or differently garnished ice cubes to make it look more fun.
• Cut some other fresh fruits, like slices of fresh peaches, to diversify the flavor and change the final look of your drink.

How you serve your iced tea?

Do you love to serve and decorate each glass or do you prefer to make one beautiful iced tea pitcher as an eye-catcher to your table? Tag me on Instagram with @blue.tea.tile or let me know in the comments, I would love to know more!

You can find the recipe card below!

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