Recipe Swap - Tea Time: Russian tea in old or new versions

By: By Michael Hastings | JOURNAL FOOD EDITOR
Published: February 10, 2010

I received several responses to Geraldine Sheek's request for a recipe for old-fashioned Russian tea, which is actually more like a hot punch of fruit juice and tea.

Some were more old-fashioned than others. Several instant versions of this recipe exist that use not only instant tea but also Tang instant juice mix. But even the instant versions date to the 1960s, when Tang was all the rage.

Sandy Kopchik's instant version does have a nice advantage. The dry mix can be made ahead of time, and you can make as much or as little tea as desired at any time by just adding hot water.

Russian Tea

Recipe submitted by Gail Morris of Clemmons. She said she now uses Splenda in this beverage.

12 cups water, divided use

2 cinnamon sticks

3 tablespoons whole cloves

1 cup sugar (or a little less, to taste)

3 family-size tea bags

1 46-ounce can unsweetened pineapple juice

1 12-ounce can frozen

concentrated orange juice

1 6-ounce can frozen concentrated lemonade

1. Bring 8 cups of the water, cinnamon, cloves and sugar to a boil in a large pot. Boil for 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile; bring remaining 4 cups of water to a boil in another pot. Add the tea bags and steep for 10 minutes.

3. Discard tea bags. Add tea mixture to spice mixture along with pineapple juice and orange- and lemon-juice concentrates. Heat all together but do not boil.

Makes about 5 quarts.

Instant Russian Tea

Submitted by Sandy Kopchik of Pfafftown.

2 cups Tang

¾ cup plus 1 teaspoon unsweetened instant tea with lemon

1¾ cups sugar

½ teaspoon plus pinch ground cloves

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Mix all the ingredients and keep stored in an airtight container at room temperature. To make the tea, stir 1 teaspoon of the mix into 1 cup of boiling water.

Makes about 200 cups.

Help

q Recipe Swap would like a recipe for peanut-butter cookies.

Send requests or recipes to Recipe Swap, c/o Michael Hastings, Food Editor, Winston-Salem Journal, P.O. Box 3159, Winston-Salem, NC 27102; by or e-mail to mhastings@wsjournal.com. Please include name, address and a daytime telephone number. Previously published recipes are available in the Recipe Database at www.journalnow.com/swap.