Cherry Lemon Tea

Instead of making traditional and well-loved Southern Sweet Tea, cool down this summer with naturally sweetened Cherry Lemon Tea! Made with water, three of your favorite tea bags, frozen or fresh cherries, agave nectar and freshly squeezed lemon juice, this summertime flavored tea takes little hands-on time and stores beautifully in the refrigerator for days. This bright, slightly sweet and slightly tart iced tea is the perfect refreshment to sip on a hot summer’s day!

Cherry lemon tea in glass and in pitcher on decorative napkin

I’ve gotta be real with y’all. I was raised in the South and have lived in the South my entire life… but I didn’t like tea until I was reaaaaaaaaaally pregnant.

Even the sweet rendition was disgusting to me.

I vividly remember attending a wedding reception, which involved a sit down dinner, when I was a girl. The only drink option for the kid table was tea. And I was so disgusted because I could not fathom how so many people drank it and enjoyed the nasty stuff. It was bitter and disgusting… and to remedy this, I poured several sugar packets into my glass since that was the only way I thought it might be palatable.

Turns out, drowning tea in sugar didn’t change my tune.

So while my friends always sipped on sweet tea during the hot summer months, I found myself gravitating toward lemonades and limeades.

Overhead view of 2 glasses and pitcher of cherry lemon tea on napkins

Then I got pregnant.

(Is it just me, or does that statement mean ‘and then EVERYTHING CHANGED’ always? Because I feel like it was a turning point for me on so many levels.)

It wasn’t until I was overdue that tea started sounding good. In fact, the only reason it was even on my radar was because my doctor told me it could potentially help bring on labor.

And really, at that point, I was willing to try anything if it meant my body went into labor on its own (it didn’t) and I didn’t have to be induced (I did.)

I drank that red raspberry leaf tea, which I jokingly called “labor tea,” like it was going out of style the week between my due date and induction date… and it actually didn’t taste horrible, even though my doctor warned me it was gross.

cherry lemon tea in a glass with a lemon wedge

When my mother was in town a few weeks ago, she requested tea to accompany our lunch. I, of course, didn’t have any made up, but as we started talking about what sounded good, I realized a few things:

  1. I had some pitted cherries in the freezer that were calling my name.
  2. Strawberry-infused tea was quite delish last summer.
  3. Cherry tea with a bit of lemon juice would be tart and slightly sweet and wonderful.

Two glasses of Cherry Lemon Tea in front of pitcher

This tea couldn’t be easier, y’all. And I’m so glad because sometimes, we just need a naturally sweet, delicious drink that can be ready to go with very little work.

Bring your water to a boil, then turn off the heat. Throw in the cherries, your tea bags and the agave nectar and let it steep for 30 minutes to an hour. Then strain the tea, add the lemon juice, pop it in the fridge, and enjoy cold!

Or if you’re like us, pour the tea straight into glasses after it steeps, add an ample amount of ice, and drink immediately.

Either way, it’s delightful.

Two glasses and pitcher of Cherry Lemon Tea

Cherry Lemon Essentials

Get the look!

Glass with lemon slice and pitcher of Cherry Lemon Tea

Here’s how you make it:

Glass of cherry lemon tea with slice of lemon
Yield: 6 cups

Cherry Lemon Tea

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Instead of making traditional and well-loved Southern Sweet Tea, cool down this summer with naturally sweetened Cherry Lemon Tea! Made with water, three of your favorite tea bags, frozen or fresh cherries, agave nectar and freshly squeezed lemon juice, this summertime flavored tea takes little hands-on time and stores beautifully in the refrigerator for days. This bright, slightly sweet and slightly tart iced tea is the perfect refreshment to sip on a hot summer's day!

Ingredients

  • 6 cups water
  • 2 cups (16 oz.) frozen or fresh cherries, pitted
  • 3 tea bags
  • 3 tablespoons agave nectar
  • ¼ cup freshly-squeezed lemon juice

Instructions

  1. In a large saucepan, bring the water to a boil.
  2. Add the cherries and the tea bags. Measure in the agave nectar, and stir until dissolved into the mixture.
  3. Steep for 30 minutes to an hour.
  4. Strain the tea, and transfer to a pitcher.
  5. Pour in the lemon juice.
  6. Chill in the refrigerator, and enjoy cold!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6 servings

Serving Size:

1 serving

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 31Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 12mgCarbohydrates: 8gFiber: 0gSugar: 6gProtein: 0g

Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate.

How much did you love this recipe?

Follow me on Instagram for more content, and share a photo of your creation with the hashtag #speckledpalate!

How do you feel about tea?

What are you using to keep yourself cool this summer?

Similar Posts

9 Comments

  1. I am with pre-pregnant you. Tea is not my cup of… well, tea! I want to like tea. I like the idea of tea. Hot tea in the winter sounds like a good idea. A nice iced tea seems refreshing but YUCK! This however, looks good. Maybe I need to easy my way into it starting with more fruit than tea and wean myself off the fruit?!

  2. This post is making me crave iced tea SO BAD! Growing up on the west coast with nothing but unsweetened iced tea, I was floored the first time I tried sweet tea in North Carolina. Such a game changer! Loving this cherry lemon infusion – if I love iced tea now, I’m curious to know how I’ll be when I eventually have kids, ha!

  3. Wow, I love the flavors happening in here! So refreshing and fragrant, I’ll take an entire pitcher because it is like 115″F outside today!

  4. We love sweet iced tea in this house! In fact, there is almost always a pitcher in my fridge. 😉 But this Cherry Lemon Tea sounds delicious! Perfect for summertime.

  5. This tea sounds delicious and I just happen to have a bag of cherries and some lemons that need a good home 😉

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *