Stoltzfus Eats: PA Dutch Meadow Tea

As we look forward to kicking off summer this weekend with Memorial Day, for today's Stoltzfus Eat's recipe we wanted to feature a Pennsylvania Dutch summer time favorite - Meadow Tea! It's the perfect refreshing drink after you've spent a day in the sunshine, or to accompany any of your favorite Stoltzfus Meats sausage grillers at your next barbeque. 

Traditionally, meadow tea was made with wild mint leaves found in (you guessed it!) the meadow, but you can use any variety of fresh mint leaves for this recipe. For our recipe, we used a combination of mojito mint and chocolate mint leaves for a sweet and mild tea.  If you'd like to grow your own mint, you'll need to select a sunny spot for your plant. Be warned, though, that mint loves to spread, so it can quickly overtake a flower bed or lawn! 

This recipe is for meadow tea concentrate, which you could serve right away or freeze for another day, and yields approximately 1 quart of concentrate (for 1 gallon of meadow tea). 

What you need for this recipe:

2 cups packed fresh mint leaves

1 3/4 cups sugar

2 1/2 cups water

Sliced fresh or frozen fruit as desired

How to make meadow tea concentrate:

Pick and wash mint leaves, and place the mint leaves in a large glass dish with a lid. 

Add sugar and water to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer until the sugar has dissolved. 

Pour sugar water over mint leaves. Cover and let steep for 10-20 minutes. 

Uncover, muddle the leaves slightly, and strain the leaves.

Pour cooled, strained tea into a pitcher of ice, and add water until it equals 1 gallon. If desired, add sliced lemons or frozen fruit of your choice. 

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As always, if you make this meal, we would love to hear about it. Please let us know in the comments or be sure to tag us on social media. Thanks for joining us for Stoltzfus Eats… where feeding you is our pleasure!