Iced Tea

I'm on a diet. Now, anyone who has been reading my blog knows that this is a ludicrious endeavor. For a woman who is addicted to chocolate, red meat, and carbs going on a diet is like an exercise in torture. So, let me rephrase, I'm trying to take things in moderation and make some positive changes in my eating habits. There, that sounds better. :)
Part of the diet is drinking more liquids in an attempt to stay hydrated etc... The problem with this is that while I am alright with water, I mean I understand it is a necessity and what not, for the most part, I get tired of drinking it in a hurry. So, what's a girl to do when she needs to hydrate in a low calorie way but is seriously tired of drinking water? Brew up some iced tea!

I started making iced tea on a regular basis several months ago, originally at my husband's request and then later because it provided flavor and thirst quenchingness without the calories of sodas or vitamin water. My usual method was to boil up a big pot of water and then pour the water over about 10 teabags in my biggest tea pot an then let it sit for several hours, pour over ice and you're all set. The big problem with this is the time it takes and the strength of the tea, it never got strong enough unless you left it brewing over night.

So, for my birthday, my husabnd bought me an iced tea maker. this ingenious device brews the tea hot but then deposits it into a pitcher filled with ice. Presto, iced tea. This isn' t a very original idea but I simply love it. And I highly recommend buying this one, Hamilton Beach 40911 2-Quart Electric Iced Tea Maker, to anyone who makes a lot of iced tea.