Blueberry Mandarin Spice Iced Tea Popsicles

It's National Iced Tea Day!  I'm going to throw this out there and admit that push comes to shove, I'm definitely an iced coffee girl.   When this event was announced, I decided I wanted to jump in and get out of my comfort zone a bit.   There's one type of tea that I love, and it's the kind that's served at Chinese restaurants.  The closest thing I've found to it is the Mandarin Spice from Celestial Seasonings.  And what goes better with orange than blueberries?  We've still got a ways to go before we can get them locally, but the ones at the grocery have been pretty good lately.

There's a few steps to this, but they all go quickly. First, I made a blueberry simple syrup by combining sugar, water, and blueberries. Normally it's a 1:1 ratio, but my berries were very tart, so I used 3/4c sugar and 1/2c water.  I was lucky to find some mandarin oranges at the market, so I zested one and added that to the syrup too. You can use a regular small orange if you can't find the mandarins.

While the simple syrup was cooling, I brewed the tea according the package directions by boiling 2 cups of water, steeping 4 teabags in it for about 6 minutes.   I added 2 cups cold water plus the juice from the orange, and set it in the fridge to chill for about 30 minutes. I added 1/3 of a cup of the blueberry simple syrup, stirred it well, then I poured the mixure into the popsicle molds and put them into the freezer.  My molds hold a total of 3 cups, so I got 6 popsicles, and had some left over.   I enjoyed that over some ice, sitting on the patio.

There's nothing like a popsicle on a hot day, so cool and refreshing! I'll be making some strawberry ones in a few weeks when picking starts, and with blackberries later in the summer.   Thanks so much to Heather from Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks for hosting and to all the other #FestiveFoodies for sharing their #NationalIcedTeaDay recipes!

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Blueberry Mandarin Spice Iced Tea Popsicles

by Jolene's Recipe Journal 6-10-2018

For the Blueberry Simple Syrup
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 pint blueberries, rinsed and picked over
Juice and zest of a small orange
For the iced tea
4 bags Celestial Seasons Mandarin Orange Spice Tea
4 cups water (divided)

Combine 3/4 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil.   Add the berries, and reduce heat to a simmer.  Add the orange zest, and simmer the berries for 5 to 10 minutes, until they pop and release their juices.  Cool completely. Strain through a fine seive or cheesecloth and discard solids. 

Boil 2 cups of water and add it to a pitcher. Steep 4 teabags in it for 4 to 6 minutes.  Add two cups of cold water, plus the juice of the orange and chill the mixture.   Once it's cold, add 1/3 cup of the blueberry simple syrup, stir, and taste.   Add additional syrup to the desired sweetness. Carefully pour the mixture into popsicle molds, then move to freezer and freeze completely.

To unmold popsicles easily, run the mold under warm water until the popsicle slides out.

Check out all the other delicious recipes for National Iced Tea Day! 

Boozy Iced Tea Lemonade from Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
 Blueberry Mandarin Spiced Iced Tea Popsicles from Jolene's Recipe Journal
 Sweet Tea Brined Oven Fried Chicken from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures
Grenadian Chocolate Iced Tea from A Day in the Life on the Farm
 Chai Tea Slushies from Cindy's Recipes and Writings

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