How NOT to Make Orange Iced Tea

How NOT to Make Orange Iced Tea, originally uploaded by Adventures of Pam & Frank.

We make a lot of iced tea at home. Not the "mix the powder with cold water" kind of iced tea, but the "boil the water, steep the tea bags, then add ice" kind of iced tea. There are a ton of flavor choices when you make iced tea from tea bags, and one of my favorites is green tea with a little lemon juice and sugar.

One day, I was cleaning out the pantry and found some Tang. Not enough to make a whole pitcher, and a little too much for a single glass, so I decided to try making orange iced tea with green tea bags and tang.

And the zest of an orange, for more flavor.

Step one: start brewing the green tea.

Step two: add some orange zest to the steeping tea so the hot water can extract the orange essence from the zest.

Step three: add the rest of the Tang powder and adjust the flavor with sugar, if needed.

Step four: try not to go overboard with your tea-making experiment...

Orange zest into the tea, originally uploaded by Adventures of Pam & Frank.

I zested the orange into the tea.
The orange essence should add some nice flavor to the tea.

Oh what the heck., originally uploaded by Adventures of Pam & Frank.

Oh what the heck.

I'll just toss the whole orange in.

 Oranges taste good.

..Here, Rachel. Taste this.

Here. Taste this., originally uploaded by Adventures of Pam & Frank.

 Boy, she sure looks suspicious, doesn't she?


And rightly so. This was the NASTIEST tasting stuff I have ever made.
She wouldn't eat or drink anything I made for a good week after this failure.




Disclaimer #1: I tasted it first and didn't die, so I know it wouldn't kill her either.
Disclaimer #2: The glass is shaking because I'm trying not to giggle as I hold it out to her. 
Disclaimer #3: She could have refused the drink offer, but didn't. Caveat Emptor.


(I love my child, but sometimes I am a bad mother.)